School students from Grades 6 to 12 can take a national quiz on the Solid Waste Management Rules 2026 between 17 September and 17 October 2026. The Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), Ministry of Education, announced the quiz at a national webinar on solid and e-waste management held in New Delhi on 16 September 2026, according to a Press Information Bureau release issued at 9:06 PM the same day.
The quiz sits on the Eco Clubs for Mission LiFE portal at ecoclubs.education.gov.in under the Swachhata Hi Seva section. It forms part of Swachhata Hi Seva 2026, which the release dates from 17 September to 17 October, and leads into Special Campaign 6.0 from 2 to 31 October 2026.
What DoSEL officials said at the webinar
Secretary, DoSEL, T. K. Anil Kumar, linked the drive to National Education Policy 2020 goals on environmental awareness and responsible citizenship among students. He recalled that under Special Campaign 5.0 about one lakh school students collected over 4,000 kg of e-waste across 10 cities in four States and one Union Territory. He said effective implementation of the Solid Waste Management Rules 2026 was essential for reducing pollution, conserving resources, promoting recycling and resource recovery, and ensuring safe and scientific management of waste.
Joint Secretary, DoSEL, Dr Amarpreet Duggal, described Eco Clubs for Mission LiFE as a platform for students to understand environmental challenges and develop environmentally responsible attitudes, values and behaviour. She said the convergence of Swachhata Pakhwada (1 to 15 September), Swachhata Hi Seva and Special Campaign 6.0 should be seen as an opportunity to deepen the culture of cleanliness among students and the wider school community. It was Duggal who announced the quiz as part of Swachhata Hi Seva 2026.
What the webinar covered
According to the release, the webinar was held under the aegis of Eco Clubs for Mission LiFE and was meant to sensitise students and other stakeholders on responsible waste management: source segregation, recycling, reuse and safe disposal of solid and electronic waste. It included expert presentations on solid waste management and a walkthrough of the Eco Clubs portal and its resources. The ministry put participation at more than 2.6 lakh school students, teachers and community members watching on YouTube.
Special Campaign 6.0 target
At a separate event the same day, DoSEL launched a portal for Special Campaign 6.0. The Secretary said the department had set a target of 7 lakh cleanliness campaigns across the country under the campaign, which runs through October.
How schools can use the quiz
The quiz link given in the release is ecoclubs.education.gov.in/swachhata-hi-seva?start=quiz. The PIB note does not publish a prize list, a question format or state-wise quotas, so the immediate goal for schools is participation and awareness of the new rules.
CBSE has since pointed its own schools to the same quiz. Its Acad-63/2026 circular on Swachhata Hi Seva, dated 25 September, notes that the Solid Waste Management Rules quiz is hosted on the Eco Clubs portal for Classes 6 to 12 and asks schools to upload details of their Swachhata activities on that portal. Non-CBSE schools can join through the same Eco Clubs link.
The quiz is framed for Grades 6 to 12, so primary sections are outside the stated band. The window closes on 17 October 2026.
Read the Ministry of Education release dated 16 September 2026 for the complete text.
