12 out of 25 top 'swachh' institutes in Tamil Nadu

Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said no government institution could secure a spot in the top 50. Therefore, the ministry made a separate category for them.

A total of 3,500 institutions applied for the first edition of "Swachta Rankings" introduced by the HRD ministry.

174 were shortlisted. Following an inspection, the top 25 were selected for awards.

"No government institution figured in the top 50. Hence, we created a separate category for them," Javadekar said at an event where the top institutions in four categories university, colleges, technical and government -- were awarded.

The participating institutions were judged on the basis of student-toilet ratio, water purity and pipeline systems, availability of running water, kitchen hygiene and garbage disposal system, among others.

While OP Jindal Global University in Sonipat topped the universities category; Kongu Arts and Science College in Erode, Tamil Nadu, was ranked first in the colleges category.

Amritha Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore, and GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology were declared the best in the technical and government institutions categories.

Other Tamil Nadu colleges that made it to the list are: Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda College (Chennai), Vivekananda College of Arts and Science (Tiruchengode), SNR Sons College (Coimbatore), KG College of Arts and Science (Coimbatore), Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Coimbatore).

Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute (Chennai), Vivekananda College of Engineering for Women (Tiruchengode), RMD Engineering College and RMK Engineering College (Chennai), Madurai Kamraj University (Madurai) and Alagappa University (Karaikudi).

Asked about Delhi colleges failing to find a spot in the list, a senior HRD Ministry official said, "The colleges were shortlisted from a number of applications received. So, it is possible not many colleges in Delhi applied for it."

However, no data was immediately available about the number of applications received from Delhi.