Haryana Launches ‘Clean City Pairing’ Initiative; Karnal Signs MoU with Five Municipalities

Chandigarh, September 27 — In a major step to strengthen the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in Karnal under the Swachh City Pairing initiative. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini attended the ceremony as chief guest at the District Secretariat auditorium.

Under the agreement, Karnal Municipal Corporation will mentor five municipal bodies Siwan and Rajound (Kaithal), Ismailabad (Kurukshetra), Narnaund (Hisar), and Kalanwali (Sirsa) in improving sanitation and urban cleanliness. Union Minister for Power, Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal also joined the event via video conferencing from Sonipat, highlighting the importance of city-to-city partnerships.

The Chief Minister said Karnal, which ranked third in the national Swachh Survekshan survey, will now guide smaller towns to achieve similar results. “We will also introduce a competition among cities within Haryana, with rankings based on set parameters,” he said. “Our aim is to make every town clean, green, and livable, fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a Swachh Bharat.”

Saini added that well-performing cities like Karnal and Sonipat have adopted other towns to mentor them in sanitation efforts. Sonipat, which also achieved a high rank in the last survey, has adopted Hodal, Narnaul, Pataudi Mandi, Farrukhnagar, and Kundli. “Cleanliness is directly linked to public health. It is our shared responsibility to make the Swachhata Abhiyan a success,” he stressed.

On the sidelines of the event, Saini assured farmers that paddy procurement in mandis is continuing smoothly with electronic weighbridges being installed. He said district officials are monitoring procurement to ensure fairness. Criticizing previous governments, he said farmers then received little or no compensation for crop loss, whereas the current administration has ensured quick payouts. Compensation for losses registered on the Kshatipoorti Portal will soon be distributed after verification, he added.

Karnal MLA Jagmohan Anand, Assandh MLA Yogendra Rana, Urban Local Bodies Director Dr. Pankaj, Deputy Commissioner Uttam Singh, Mayor Renu Bala Gupta, and senior municipal officials were present at the event.