- Why in news
- On 29 September 2026, Union Minister Manohar Lal launched PRAGATI-50 in New Delhi. It picks 50 model cities for higher cleanliness benchmarks under SBM-Urban 2.0.
- What it is
- Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 is the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry's programme for garbage-free cities, covering solid waste, used water management and sanitation. PRAGATI-50 is a focused layer within it. It picks 50 cities for KPI-based action and close, technology-enabled monitoring.
- PRAGATI-50 cities
- The initiative covers 50 model cities across 24 states, including major cities, cultural and tourism centres and economic hubs.
- Monitoring
- A PRAGATI-like digital review system is on the Swachhatam Portal. Ministry officers are assigned to specific cities for supervision and handholding.
- Swachh Bharat Test Bed
- A national facility at Durgapur with CSIR-CMERI for research, testing, validation, certification and capacity building in sanitation technologies.
- Guidelines released
- An SOP for secondary collection centres for C&D waste and guidelines for source segregation of municipal solid waste, mandated under the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2026, were released.
- Biomining outputs
- At Gorakhpur, biomining separated waste into refuse-derived fuel, black soil, recyclables and inert material. The fuel went to cement industries for co-processing.
- Sustaining tools
- City Solid Waste Action Plans, the SBM-U portal and Swachh Survekshan rankings are used to keep progress on course.
- Nodal ministry
- SBM-U is run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Don’t confuse with PRAGATI-50 vs PRAGATI platform: PRAGATI-50 is a cleanliness initiative for 50 cities. The PRAGATI platform is the Prime Minister's ICT-based system for reviewing projects. The new initiative's review mechanism is modelled on it.
Don’t confuse with SBM-Urban vs SBM-Gramin: SBM-Urban is run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. SBM-Gramin is run by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
Don’t confuse with SBM-U vs SBM-Gramin: SBM-U covers urban areas and is run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. SBM-Gramin covers rural areas and is run by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
Don’t confuse with Biomining vs landfill capping: Biomining excavates and sorts old waste for reuse. Capping covers the waste in place and does not recover the land.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Time-bound, KPI-based targets in select cities can create benchmarks other cities copy.
- Tech monitoring and a WhatsApp complaint channel strengthen accountability and citizen participation.
- Reclaims scarce urban land and reduces fire, leachate and air pollution risks.
- Turns waste into resources such as fuel, compost and soil, supporting a circular economy.
Problems
- Urban local bodies have weak finances and capacity, so gains in 50 cities may not spread to the rest.
- Visible cleanliness can be favoured over deeper issues such as legacy waste and used water treatment.
- Fresh waste keeps arriving, so sites can refill without source segregation and processing capacity.
- Urban Local Bodies have limited finances and technical capacity for large remediation contracts.
Way forward
- Back model cities with funds, trained staff and source segregation, and extend what works to other cities.
- Use outcome-based third-party assessment to check results beyond appearances.
- Pair remediation with door-to-door segregation and new processing plants so legacy waste does not rebuild.
- Track progress on the SBM-U portal and link performance to rankings and funding.
Put in your answer
City as a Whole approach: The initiative includes all stakeholders and urban local bodies in planning and delivery.
RRR Centre: A Reduce Reuse and Recycle centre at Sankalp Bhawan is meant as the first of its kind in a Union Ministry office, promoting circularity in government workplaces.
Raichur example: Part of the Yakalaspura dumpsite is becoming a Miyawaki forest.
- 2026Mains GS3 · Q17Challenges to solid waste management; policy framework; Delhi and Indore cases.
- 2017Mains GS2 · Q6Examine aligning beneficiary segments with outcomes in the WASH scheme.
- 2016Mains GS4 · Q4How social influence and persuasion can aid Swachh Bharat Abhiyan's success.
- 2018Mains GS3 · Q6Impediments to disposing discarded solid waste and safely removing toxic wastes
- 2019Prelims Q59Which statement about Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 is correct?
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: PRAGATI-50 adds 50 model cities under SBM-U 2.0; same lasting topic, few testable facts for UPSC.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.