Beyond Cleanliness: The Women and Transgender Changemakers of Swachhata

This PIB backgrounder highlights the roles of women and transgender changemakers in sanitation and waste management under the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 campaign, themed "Swachhata Mein Sahbhag; Swachh Bharat, Viksit Bharat." It features local initiatives across various states: women in Loni, Uttar Pradesh, converting cow dung into incense products; a women-led Pink Material Recovery Facility (MRF) and mobile Pink Toilets in Patna, Bihar; community ambassador and self-help groups such as Bhopal's brand ambassadors, Uttarakhand's 'Bainni Sena', and Shillong's 'Meri Maidens of Marton'; and the engagement of transgender self-help groups in operating faecal sludge treatment plants and cesspool vehicles in Odisha.