Mawlynnong : The Cleanest Village in Asia

Neatly arranged houses surrounded by flowering plants

Starting from Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya I traveled for 90 kms until I arrived at my intended location. I was welcomed by the hills and lush green plantations of broom plants as I was about to enter Mawlynnong, the cleanest village in Asia.



In my previous travels I have always stayed in hotels or guest houses, but this was going to be different because it was going to be my first stay in a village. Mawlynnong is a small village of about 90 odd families situated near the Indo – Bangla Border.

View of a Pathway of the village

As I entered the village I was awed by its cleanliness. There was not a single piece of litter to be found anywhere. One could sit on the pathways only without worrying about getting oneself dirty. There is one thing in common that you will find with all the houses is that its surrounded by flowers adding to the beauty of the whole place.

Bamboo Dustbins

But the one thing that will strike your mind everywhere you go in this village is the dustbins made of bamboo which you will find everywhere.

Home-stays

It was mainly a farming village with Beetle nuts and Broom as main crops but with it been declared as the cleanest village in Asia, the flow of tourist began to grow and so villagers opened up their houses for the tourist and thus Tourism became a major source of income for the village. I also checked in one of the home-stays for my overnight stay.

Streets of Mawlynnong

 I was intrigued by the cleanness and beauty of this small village and I asked myself only one question is how can it be so different here from the rest of India. When the Government of India has launched the ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ to clean the whole of India this village achieved that years ago. Even the Prime Minister of India Mr. Narendra Modi acknowledged it and spoke about Mawlynnong in his Radio speech ‘Mann Ki Baat’.

Villagers busy in cleaning the streets and taking care of the flowers

The onus to keep the village clean lies with each individual living in the village. Each individual is assigned a daily task by the village elders, which he or she has to perform without any excuse, whether it’s the cleaning of the streets or taking care of the flowers and plants dotting the pathways or sorting of garbage etc. Even the children can be found fully participating in the above tasks and thus learning about the importance of cleanliness from a very young age.

The Bamboo path of the Sky View

View of Bangladesh from the Sky View

When you are here in Mawlynnong you will find one more interesting thing constructed by the villagers called the Sky View, and 85 feet high lookout tower made entirely of Bamboo. As you make your way to the top through the winding pathway you will get stunning views of not just the village but breath-taking views of   Bangladesh as well on the other side.

There are two or three eateries here where you are served with simple and authentic food with the addition of chapatti and tea. If you are a non-vegetarian then they will prepare chicken in a unique way with local herbs found only around here. The offerings in the menu are limited but tasty enough to tantalise your taste buds after a long exploring walk of the village.

       

Me with a lady of the village

The next day as I prepared to leave mawlynnong and bid adieu to the people of the village, there smiling faces made me realize why this place is so special. The mysticism of the place lies not only in the village but also in its people and this are the only reasons which make you promise yourself to come back again to this place.