Cooch Behar, 8 April 2025: A new step has been taken in the field of cleanliness in West Bengal. The State Urban Development Agency (SUDA) has launched the ‘Swachhsathi’ app, which promises to make the monitoring of garbage collection digital and transparent. Through this app, every small and big information related to garbage will now be uploaded online, making it easier to find out where the cleaning work has been done, where it is left and in which areas there are problems. It has started from Cooch Behar district, but soon it is set to reach the entire state and Kolkata.

What is ‘Swachhsathi’ app?

‘Swachhsathi’ is a digital platform that ensures accountability for garbage collection as well as its real-time monitoring. In this app, sanitation workers will have to upload information about their work, such as from where the garbage was collected, how many houses reached, and in which areas there was a problem. Also, the app allows one to register complaints against people throwing garbage on the streets and monitor the working style of the workers.

“This app is a great example of modern technology. It will not only bring transparency in waste management but will also facilitate resolution of grievances between citizens and sanitation workers,” said a source in the state urban development agency.

Started in Cooch Behar, training in full swing

The initiative has been started in six municipalities of Cooch Behar district—Cooch Behar, Dinhata, Mathabhanga, Tufanganj, Haldibari, Mekhliganj—and Alipurduar Municipality. SUDA has started training the Nirmal Saathis of these areas to use the app. A team of nine officials has been training the sanitation workers for the past few days at the hall of Cooch Behar Municipality. Three representatives from each municipality participated in the training. Cooch Behar Municipality Chairman Rabindranath Ghosh praised the initiative and said, “Online monitoring will make it easier to catch theft in work. If someone does not cooperate in cleaning or throws garbage on the road, that too will be recorded through this app. This is a big step towards cleanliness.”
Solution to the challenges of garbage collection
Complaints are often heard about garbage collection in cities. Many citizens say that sanitation workers do not reach their homes regularly, while the workers complain that people throw garbage on the roads. The ‘Swachhsathi’ app claims to solve both these problems. Now complaints will be registered online, which will make it clear where the real problem is.
A local resident, Sunita Das, said, “Garbage in our locality sometimes remains for weeks. If this app really works, we can get relief.” At the same time, a sanitation worker, on the condition of anonymity, said, “People throw garbage on the road and then blame us. Now the app will have proof of whose fault it is.”
Plan to expand across Bengal

Although this initiative is currently limited to Cooch Behar, sources say that this is a kind of ‘pilot project’. The app will be fully launched in the next one week and will gradually be implemented in all the districts of the state and Kolkata Municipal Corporation area. Kolkata already has a system of garbage management, but with the arrival of this app, the level of monitoring and accountability will increase further.

The IT department and sanitation inspectors will monitor it together. The app will also track whether the employees are going door to door every day and whether the garbage collection work is being done on time.

How much impact in the direction of cleanliness?

Experts believe that this app is a positive attempt to connect technology and ground level needs. Environmentalist Anita Roy said, “If implemented properly, there can be a revolution in garbage management. But for this, cooperation of citizens is also necessary. The habit of throwing garbage on the road will have to be changed.”

However, some people are skeptical about its success. Pradeep Saha, a shopkeeper, expressed concern and said, “The app is fine, but what if the employees do not use it or there is a problem with the technology? Earlier too, many schemes remained limited to paper.”

The way forward

The ‘Swachhsathi’ app has definitely brought a ray of hope in the field of cleanliness. If this experiment succeeds in Cooch Behar, it can become a model for the whole of Bengal. But its real effect will be seen only when both the citizens and the administration adopt it together. Right now all eyes are on how quickly and how effectively this digital initiative reaches the ground.