The third cohort of Swachhata startups was launched in collaboration with which institution?

The correct answer is 50 cities across 24 states. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has identified 50 model cities under PRAGATI-50 to demonstrate a higher benchmark of Swachhata, and the Union Minister stated at the launch that these cities are spread across 24 states. The list was framed to include major cities, places of cultural importance, leading tourism destinations and economic centres. Option A understates both figures. Option C uses the startup target of the Mission rather than the number of cities, which makes it a plausible trap. Option D doubles the number of cities while keeping the correct number of states, so it too is wrong. The initiative takes its name from the number of cities chosen, which is a useful memory aid.

The correct answer is Durgapur. The Ministry set up the Swachh Bharat Test Bed and Innovation Centre at Durgapur in collaboration with CSIR-CMERI, and it is meant to serve as a national facility for research, product development, testing, validation, certification and capacity building in sanitation technologies. Option B, Kanpur, is a plausible distractor because the third cohort of Swachhata startups was launched with the Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre at IIT Kanpur, but that is a separate activity from the Test Bed. Option C, Indore, is widely associated with urban cleanliness rankings but was not named as the Test Bed site. Option D, Pune, was not mentioned at all. The centre was created because the Mission has consistently placed research and innovation at the heart of its Swachhata work. Hence option A is correct.

The correct answer is in a Union Ministry office. As part of Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 the Union Minister inaugurated a Reduce, Reuse and Recycle Centre at Sankalp Bhawan in New Delhi, and it has been described as the first such centre in a Union Ministry office. The purpose is to promote sustainable consumption, reuse, resource recovery and circularity within government workplaces, so that the offices framing the policy also practise it. Option A, a railway station, and options C and D, a municipal corporation building and a central university campus, are all places where such collection points are plausible, and RRR centres have been popularised widely, but the distinction claimed here relates specifically to a Union Ministry office. Hence option B is correct.

The correct answer is Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. Representatives of Gram Panchayat Sakaria said that villagers once depended on wells and tube wells, that every household now has a piped connection and Har Ghar Jal status has been achieved, that Jal Arpan was organised on 16 March 2026, and that drinking water service is supported by a user charge of Rs 150 a month with billing and payment through digital platforms, backed by weekly water quality testing. Option A is wrong because Bokaro in Jharkhand is where Gorabali South Gram Panchayat described the women-led Jal Sahiya model. Option B is wrong because Alipurduar in West Bengal is the district of Dashinpara Gram Panchayat, whose representatives spoke in Nepali. Option D is wrong because Partapur in Nubra, Ladakh, reported year-round supply even when temperatures fall to nearly minus 30 degrees Celsius.

The correct answer is the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, known as DDWS, which functions under the Ministry of Jal Shakti and runs the Jal Jeevan Mission. The Samvad is its platform for speaking directly to Gram Panchayat representatives, Village Water and Sanitation Committee members and villagers about keeping rural water supply schemes working. Option A is wrong because rural development handles a different set of programmes and was not the organiser here. Option C is wrong because that department deals with river development and water resources rather than household drinking water service delivery, although it also sits under the Ministry of Jal Shakti. Option D is wrong because Panchayati Raj institutions were the participants in this dialogue, not its organiser; the Secretary of DDWS chaired the session and stressed that Panchayats must own operation and maintenance, collect user charges and protect their water sources.