Patna: Patna’s civic authorities have approved a sweeping overhaul of sanitation and cremation services, unveiling a new master plan aimed at making the Bihar capital cleaner, less polluted and more citizen-friendly.
At a meeting of the empowered standing committee of the Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC), officials agreed to modernise services across all 75 municipal wards, ranging from waste collection and transport to facilities at cremation grounds. The plan, backed by the state government led by chief minister Nitish Kumar, is being presented as a major step towards improving urban living standards in the new year.
Central to the initiative is a significant expansion of the city’s waste management fleet. The PMC will purchase 375 garbage trucks and an equal number of garbage carts or CNG-powered tippers, designed with modern technology to prevent waste from spilling on roads during collection and transport to dumping yards. Officials said the additional vehicles would strengthen the existing sanitation system and help ensure regular garbage collection across the city.
Patna’s mayor, Sita Sahu, said the tender process for procuring the new vehicles would begin in the second week of the new year. Once inducted, the vehicles are expected to reduce complaints about unclean streets and neighbourhoods, particularly in densely populated areas.
Alongside the fleet expansion, the corporation has prepared a new master plan to make all wards pollution-free. Under the scheme, the Nutan Rajdhani and Patliputra zones have been divided into 80 sectors each, a move intended to streamline waste collection and ease the workload of sanitation staff. Smaller waste carts and CNG tippers will be deployed to navigate narrow lanes and congested localities, enabling regular removal of waste even from hard-to-reach areas.
The PMC has also announced reforms at cremation grounds, framing them as a public interest measure. Wood for cremations at major ghats, including Digha Ghat, Bans Ghat, Gulbi Ghat, Khajekalan Ghat and Naya Tola, will be made available at minimum and fixed rates. In addition, the fees charged by Dom Raja, the community traditionally responsible for conducting cremations, will be capped according to rates set by the corporation to prevent arbitrary charges.
Municipal officials said the combined measures would not only improve cleanliness and reduce pollution but also offer financial relief to residents at a time of bereavement. The administration hopes the initiative will mark a turning point in efforts to transform Patna into a cleaner, better-organised and more sensitive capital city.
