Govt earned nearly ₹4,100 cr by disposing of scrap from offices in 5 years

The union minister of state for personnel Jitendra Singh mentioned that a campaign was initiated to clear out redundant office files, broken furniture, and other junk from government offices

Union minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday shared that the government has earned nearly Rs 4100 crore in the last five years from the disposal of scrap, including electronic items, from various central government offices as part of its cleanliness campaign.

Singh, the union minister of state for personnel, explained that at the end of the special Swachhata (cleanliness) campaign 4.0 last year, nearly Rs 3,300 crore had been earned, to which Rs 788.53 crore was added through this year's special campaign 5.0 lasting from October 2 to October 31 2025. As a result, the total amount earned, so far, is over Rs 4088.53 crore.

"Total revenue of Rs 4088.53 crore has been earned through five dedicated annual cleanliness campaigns lasting one month each since 2021, through disposal of scrap, including electronic scrap, from different central government offices as part of the special Swachhata campaign," he said.

The minister recalled that during his first Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a cleanliness initiative from the ramparts of the Red Fort. This appeal sparked a mass movement, resulting in the construction of over four lakh toilets in the first year alone, he noted.

Singh mentioned that a campaign was initiated to clear out redundant office files, broken furniture, and other junk from government offices.

Providing a timeline, the minister stated that each year, new dimensions were added to the campaign. In 2021, following the prime minister's advice, it was decided that while the Swachhata movement would continue, there would be a dedicated special Swachhata campaign from October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti) to October 31, in which all government ministries and departments were expected to actively participate and regularly report on their progress.

For the last three years or so, Singh said that besides the conventional scrap, there was also a lot of electronic scrap in the offices, which could be disposed of not only to generate revenue for the state but could also be converted through recycling to generate wealth from waste.

Another significant outcome of the campaign is that as much as 231.75 lakh square feet of space was cleared for productive use that was previously occupied by waste materials, worn-out furniture, and scrap.

Singh pointed out that the total revenue of over Rs 4,088 crore earned from selling scrap could cover the budget of a major space mission or multiple Chandrayaan missions. The total area freed up is substantial enough to accommodate a large mall or other significant structures for economic activity.

This year's special Swachhata campaign 5.0, Singh said, also took place at a time when extensive "Waste to Wealth" activity has been undertaken by the Ministry of Science & Technology.

This, for example, includes recycling of hospital waste through a technology developed by CSIR-NIIST Thiruvanathapuram and deployed at AIIMS New Delhi, recycling of cooked oil undertaken by CSIR-IIP Dehradun and use of steel sludge for road construction through technology developed by CSIR-CRRI New Delhi, he added.