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New Delhi, May 20 (PTI): Nearly 97 per cent of municipal wards across the country are now covered under door-to-door waste collection, marking a major milestone under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U), according to an official statement.

The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry on Wednesday said waste processing in urban areas has risen sharply from 16 per cent in 2014 to 81 per cent in 2026, reflecting growing infrastructure and institutional capacity in municipalities across states and Union territories.

The ministry highlighted rapid progress in legacy waste remediation, saying that around 65 per cent of the 26 crore metric tonnes of waste spread across 2,482 dumpsites have been cleared so far.

The exercise has reclaimed around 9,000 acres of urban land for productive use, it added.

The achievements were highlighted during the two-day National Review of SBM-U 2.0 held at Vigyan Bhawan here, under the chairpersonship of Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal.

Mentioning the key takeaways, the minister on Wednesday said, "We need to focus on what we need to change, whether it is financial challenges, matching state/UT shares, resolving implementational bottlenecks like tendering delays, land allocation or augmenting institutional capacities." "We have only 10 months to prepare a focused plan and achieve allotted targets," he said, while calling for state-wise mapping of key issues and challenges.

States were directed to update progress daily on the Swachhatam Portal to enable regular reviews and rigorous tracking by the ministry.

The minister also stressed the importance of behavioural change, noting that "Swabhav Swachhata, Sanskar Swachhata" should be integrated into the curriculum. PTI BUN RHL RHL

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