In a result that is unlikely to go down well with the ruling Mamata Banerjee government in state, 19 out of 25 dirties cities are from West Bengal, according to Central Government's cleanliness survey.

The survey accounted for 500 cities in India with a population of over 1 lakh according to report. Bengal cities are in the bottom of the pile with Bhadreshwar being rated the dirtiest. Of top 10, 7 are from Bengal which include Bankura, Champandi, Bansberia, Khardah, Baidyabati and Panihati. The rest 3 are one apiece from Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

According to Hindustan Times report, the other cities from West Bengal which fared poorly include Darjeeling, Serampore, Madhyamgram among others. West Bengal also was one of the dirtiest states overall alongside Nagaland, Puducherry and Tripura. HT quoted Subrata Gupta, West Bengal principal secretary (urban affairs and municipal affairs department) as saying, “I am not aware of any such survey. I have not seen the survey report and won’t be able to comment on it. The state, however, runs its own cleanliness program called Nirmal Bangla as part of which we rank our cities.

The report was published by PM Modi on Saturday. Bengal took part in the Swachh survey for the first time. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said Indore was inspiring the rest of the country on cleanliness, after the city emerged as the cleanest in the Centre's nationwide survey. This was the second time the commercial hub of Madhya Pradesh was adjudged the cleanest city in the cleanliness survey.

The survey ranked cities best on six parameters, among which citizen feedback was also included. Collection and transportation of municipal waste, sanitation, innovation were among other parameters.

The number of urban local bodies (ULBs) assessed has progressively increased over the years, from a modest 73 metropolitan cities and state capitals in 2016, to 434 in 2017, to a pan India coverage of 4,203 ULBs in the current round, including 61 cantonment boards.

With agency inputs