Kashi eyes India’s first garbage-free tag in 2 months

Varanasi: With 23 of its 27 garbage dumps already shut and the rest set to disappear soon, Varansi would become India’s first garbage-free city in next two months, said mayor Ashok Kumar Tiwari on Tuesday adding that work was underway to eliminate the remaining four.

Tiwari, who completed three years in office, added that Varanasi’s Swachh Survekshan ranking improved from 41 in 2023 to 17 in 2025. The number of sanitation workers has increased from 4,075 to 7,428, while cleaning at major temples and key roads is being carried out in three shifts.

The civic body is also focusing on scientific bio-mining of the Karsada dumping ground and plans to develop an urban forest there using the Miyawaki technique.

Highlighting financial management, the mayor said revenue collection rose from Rs 94.36 crore to Rs 415 crore in the past three years without any increase in property tax. During the same period, the Municipal Corporation’s budget expanded from Rs 843 crore to Rs 2,775.44 crore.

He added that 1,250 bigha of prime land was freed from encroachment and added to the corporation’s land bank under the anti-encroachment drive.