After surveying 100 Indian cities, the National Health and Cleaning Observing Organisation, a Chandigarh-based NGO, gave the rating to Greater Noida. Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mohali, Mumbai, Delhi, Gurgaon, Dehradun and Jaipur — they all fall behind, in this ratings at least. Commissioned by the Union Human Resources Development Ministry, the NGO has been working on cleanliness systems in cities across the country for the past 25 years, its managing director Harpreet Singh Sandhu said. The organisation also advises district administrations in major cities on implementation of advanced cleaning systems.

Sandhu said the survey worked on “three basic criteria, and many other conditions, to decide upon our rankings”. The criteria adopted were:

* The cleaning system in place.
* Problems city residents face.
* Effect on surrounding areas and general awareness among the residents.

And Greater Noida, Sandhu said, beat the other 99 cities surveyed in all three aspects. It is the one of the few cities in the country to put in place a mechanised cleaning system, and Greater Noida Authority’s records say it has not received any complaint from any resident about cleanliness and maintenance in the past seven months. The use of polythene is minimal, and Authority officials said they have recently put in place a system to dispose off waste in an eco-friendly manner.

Sandhu said the sewage treatment plants have also been equipped to produce electricity, which has helped the city’s environment no end.