Mumbai: To encourage cleanliness and increase participation of citizens in maintaining cleanliness in the city, the BMC will conduct a cleanliness competition named ‘Swachhata Manthan’ from Jan 1, 2026 to December 2026 in various categories such as a BMC ward, residential complex, commercial establishment, hospital, school, restaurant, gardens, roads/streets and market area among others with a total prize money of over Rs 4 crore. Celebrities and citizens will also be encouraged to adopt an area, while housing societies will be encouraged to adopt surrounding areas and maintain cleanliness there. In the clean residential complex category, the first prize will be Rs 15 lakh, the second prize is Rs 10 lakh and third being Rs 5 lakh.The clean commercial establishment category will have the same prize money.The categories in the competition also include clean slum area, clean community toilets, clean roads/streets, clean gardens and open spaces. Winners in each category will receive cash prizes and certificates. According to the civic body, celebrities and citizens will be encouraged to adopt an area or housing societies to adopt surrounding areas and maintain cleanliness there, through this competition. Chief Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde have appealed to citizens and private establishments to participate in large numbers in this competition.For the special category of adopting surrounding areas for cleanliness, the first prize will be Rs 15 lakh, second Rs 10 lakh, third Rs 5 lakh. The evaluation of the entire competition will be carried out through a third-party agency. A grand prize distribution ceremony will be organized in December 2026 in the presence of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister. Renowned film actor Akshay Kumar has expressed his willingness to voluntarily participate in all the initiatives.According to a civic release, celebrities from the field of films, sports and other fields, besides other citizens, should adopt an area and encourage others to participate in this competition and help maintain cleanliness. Similarly, housing societies should adopt surrounding areas and maintain cleanliness there. The application procedure for the competition, various categories for the competition, details of prizes and other details will be announced soon. Civic officials pointed out that the parameters for the competition will be set and evaluation of the competition will be carried out by BMC with the help of third party consultancy firms.
