(GIST OF YOJANA) Sanitation Revolution : Cleaning urban India [NOVEMBER-2018]

(GIST OF YOJANA) Sanitation Revolution : Cleaning urban India

[NOVEMBER-2018]

Sanitation Revolution : Cleaning urban India

A multi-pronged approach comprising regulatory and policy level changes, sustainable infrastructure creation and focussing on attitudinal and behaviour change among people through large scale citizen engagement has been the hallmark of the Government’s initiatives on the journey towards a “swachh bharat”.

The Cost of Poor Sanitation

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) place significant emphasis on sanitation, cleanliness and hygiene. There is significant evidence globally that better sanitation, hygiene and cleanliness helps in effective control of various vector borne disease, parasite infections and nutritional deficiencies. There have been studies linking cleanliness and hygiene with reduction in respiratory disorders, gastrointestinal diseases (especially diarrhea) , psychologist issues and allergic conditions . As per a UNICEF report (2011), almost 90 percent of child deaths from diarrheal disease are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation or inadequate hygiene. In addition to the impact on communicable diseases, better sanitation, hygiene and waste disposal lead to reduction in occurences of low birth weight in occurrences of low birth weight babies, spontaneous abortions and occurrences of birth defects. Various studies have established that the problem of solid waste management has been compounded due to high population concentration in urban areas. Waste that is not properly managed, especially excreta and other liquid and solid waste from households and the community, are a serious health hazard and lead to the spread of infectious diseases.

The launch of Swachh Bharat Mission

Decades ago, Mahatma Gandhi said that ‘sanitation is more important than political freedom’. The launch of Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October 2014 by the Prime Minister to address this burgeoning health crisis was a historic moment for India-not merely for placing the issue of sanitation at the centre of the Government’s development agenda, but also for the resounding agenda that was sent out from the ramparts of the Red Fort: “ Na Gandagi Karenga Denge” ( I shall not make my environment diry, nor will I allow others to do so), there by making every citizen an equal partners in India’s journey towards ‘swachhata’. The Swachhata Bharat Mission (urban ) (refer Figure being implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is aimed at transforming Urban India into a garbage- free and open defecation free tribute to Gandhi ji’s memory on his 150th birth anniversary.

Star Rating For Garbage Cities

The Ministry has introduced a new innovative for evaluating the Garbage Free status of Cities and awarding the “Garbage Free City Stars” to the city. The Star Rating initiative , which is a rating protocol based on twelve protocol based on twelve (12) parameters, follows a SMART framework - Single metric, Measurable, Achievable, Rigorous verification mechanism and Targeted towards outcomes- and has been devised in a holistic manner covering all aspects of Solid Waste Management viz. Public Cleanliness, Door to Door collection, source segregation, processing, cleanliness of drains and water bodies, plastic waste management, managing construction and demolition waste etc. which are critical drivers for achieving garbage free cities. In fact, as more and more cities get certified as ‘stars’ and ’citizens, aspirations grow around cleanliness and higher standards of liveability,it may well emerge as a key differentiator in the administrative/ political fabric of the country, where number of stars for their city can be one of the parameters for evaluating effectiveness of administration and elected representatives in achieving Swachhata.

Some Inspiring Stories of Citizens Participation A doctor couple from Challapalli district have been undertaking cleanliness drives in their surroundings every day of the year.

Monks of Ramakrishna Mission in Karnataka hold regular cleaning drives alongwith citizen volunteers to keep roads had localities clean. Wing Commander PAramvir Singh, along with three swimmers and six raft-men, undertook a Ganga Avahan’ , swimming a length of 2,800 km along River Ganga from Devprayag (Uttarakhand ) to Ganga Sagar (West Bengal) to spread awareness be out the Swachh Bharat Mission.

Three enterprising ladies from Maharashtra-Suvarna Lokhande from Sinnar-Nasik district, Sangeeta Awale from Saikheda- Washim district, and Chaitali Rathod from Mozar- district Yavatmal had taken the their families’ self-esteem.

While Suvarna took a loan from “Bachat Gat” (Self-help Group) for building the toilet, Sangeeta sold her mangalsutra to fund the toilet, and Chaitali asked for a toilet at her in-laws’ place instead of any other items from her parents during her marriage. Agra-based organisation India Rising carries out weekly cleaning drives with citizens volunteers across multiple locations in the city. Social and Economic Impacts of Swachh Bharat Mission: A Few Examples

A recent study by the Indore Municipal Corporation (jagran 2017) has found that vector-borne disease have reduced by 70 percent due to the sanitation interventions under Swachh Bharat Mission . in fact, the number of patients affected by jaundice, cholera, vomiting, diarrhoea, hepatitis and malaria in Indore have reduced from 1,00,000 between june to August 2016 to 35,000 during the same period in 0217. As a result, the sale of medicines across Indore has dropped by INR 20 crores, which has contributed i controlling healthcare related costs in the city. State of Chhattisgarh has reported a dramatic reduction in contamination and incidences of diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid etc,. In the last two years.

Success Story

Plastic Free Sitamarhi

Sitamarhi, the first district in Bihar to become open defecation free (ODF), on 17 july 2018 is now heading towards a much-talked about plastic ban that will be carried out in a phased manner. This initiative comes under Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin/ Lohiya Swachh Yojana, the vision being Swachh Sitamarhi (clean Sitamarhi), Sunder Sitamarhi (Beautiful Sitamarhi).

Under this, all kinds of plastic bags ( both with and without a handle), all plastic or thermocol cutlery such as spoons and plates, non-woven polypropylene bags, food containers, plastic packaging, and PET and PETE bottles are included.

Until now as many as 10 lakh cotton bags which have been made by rural women entrepreneurs from various Self Help Groups (SHG) of project JEEVIKA have been procured by the district for distribution. Plastic free Sitamarhi campaign will not only reduce the micro-plastic contents in the food cycle but will also give a boost to the rural women entrepreneurship program of JEEVIKA and will act as a catalyst for women empowerment towards a social cause

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Conclusion

Today, the concepts of cleanliness and swachhata have come to embody the spirit of empowerment and quality of life. Investments in sanitation and garbage free cities can significantly impact our lives and the larger environment by providing a better quality of life for all, especially the economically weaker sections, ensuring dignity and safety of women and children, positively impacting health outcomes through reduction in vector-borne diseases, providing enhanced livelihood opportunities and greater earning potential for rag pickers and other informal sectors, opening up entrepreneurial opportunities in the waste management sector, and improving tourism potential and resultant foreign exchange inflow, thus positively impacting the GDP of the country cleaner environment will lead to a “Swasth, Swasth, Samarth, and Samriddh’ Bharat and pave the way for New India- 2022.

Locate Public Toilets on Google Maps

The Ministry of Housing and Urban affairs, under the aegis of Swachh Bharat Mission- Urban (SBM-U), has partnered with Google to launch the Loo Review campaign to encourage all local guides in India to rate and review public toilets on Google Maps. This campaign is part of a feature which allows all citizens to locate public toilets in their cities on Google Maps, Search and the Assistant and also provide feedback on the same. 500+ cities in India with more than 30,000 toilets with the name of “SBM Toilet” are currently live on Google Maps.

The joint campaign to be run throughout October and November 2018 is an effort to increase the awareness and ease of locating public toilets across India. The campaign will involve and engage Local Guides in India to rate and ease of locating public toilets across India. The campaign will involve and engage Local Guides in India to rate and review public toilets on Google’ social channels. Local Guides are people who shares review for the chance to be featured on Google Local Guides’ social channels. Local Guides are people who shares reviews, photos and knowledge on Google Maps to help people explore the world. Anyone can join the Local Guides community and review places on Google Maps.

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