Indore (Madhya Pradesh): It wasn’t the first time they had encountered such a challenge but the speed of post-Diwali clean-up truly took Indoreans by surprise. After grand Diwali celebrations, residents woke up Friday morning only to find that tonnes of firecracker debris, which had accumulated on roads and streets, had vanished within just a few hours.

Sanitation workers of Indore, which clinched the cleanest city tag seven times in a row and is hoping to retain the title once again, surprised residents yet again by cleaning up around 500 tonnes of waste from every nook and corner of the city.

‘As dawn broke after Diwali, Indore set into motion an impressive post-festival clean-up operation to maintain its rank as India’s cleanest city,’ municipal commissioner Shivam Verma said. In a well-coordinated effort, nearly 8k safai mitras (sanitation workers) took charge across the city beginning at 4 am, clearing streets, markets and neighbourhoods before most residents began their day.

By 7 am, iconic areas like Rajwada and other busy roads were cleaned and restored. Verma, who had arrived in the field around 4 am to monitor the cleanliness drive, reached Rajwada around 6 am to ensure that the heartland is totally cleaned up.

Well devised plan

Additional municipal commissioner Abhilash Mishra said that Verma had devised a detailed plan for post-Diwali clean-up. Approximately 8k safai mitras (sanitation workers) were deployed to manage the city-wide effort. Main roads, arterial routes and residential colonies were cleaned systematically, with 1500 tonnes of waste – 500 tonnes more than usual – being cleared.

The waste mostly consisted of remnants from firecrackers, garlands and shop disposables. Firecracker remnants, specifically, were carefully separated and promptly transported to a specialised disposal area, where water was sprayed to mitigate air pollution. To manage effects of the previous night’s smoke, six AQI (Air Quality Index) control machines sprayed water throughout the city from 1 am helping to dissipate smoke and clear the air by early morning.

Full force of cleaning machines mobilised

The cleaning drive also saw the operation of all 27 available sweeping machines, a rare occurrence given the city’s typical deployment of 14 machines daily. A team of 300 members from Indore Waste Management (IWM) group was positioned at major points utilising the full capacity of cleaning equipment to ensure thorough coverage of the city.