Sanitation Coverage Increased in the Country from 38.7% in 2014 to 77.25% in 2018

February 6, 2018: Total 10,953 villages in the State of Jharkhand has been declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) under The Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) (SBM(G)). According to the data provided by the ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, out of total 29,647 villages of Jharkhand 10,953 villages, (i.e.36.94%) have been declared as ODF. Performance of Jharkhand (36.94%), however, is better than many other States/UTs such as Andaman & Nicobar Islands (0.93%), Assam (29.82%), Bihar (9.7%), Dadra & Nagar Haveli (17.39%), Jammu and Kashmir (6.80%), Manipur (24.30%), Odisha (16.34%), Puducherry (7.92%) and Tripura (1.65%).

The details were provided by Minister of State for Drinking Water and Sanitation Shri Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi in the Rajya Sabha on February 5, 2018 in reply to the question raised by Member of Parliament Shri Parimal Nathwani.

In accordance with the statement tabled in the House, performance of the State of Gujarat in this respect is 100% with all 18,261 ODF declared villages in the State.

The government of India launched SBM (G) on October 2, 2014 to mark Birth Anniversary of Mahtama Gandhiji and set the target of attaining Swachh Bharat by October 2, 2019. Total 11 states namely Gujarat, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Chandigarh, Daman and Diu, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Meghalaya have also been declared ODF, said the minister in the reply tabled in the Rajya Sabha.

Mr. Nathwani wanted to know about the progress of the mission to eliminate open defecation in the country; and especially in the States of Gujarat and Jharkhand; and the efforts made by the Central Government for creating healthy competition among the State Governments with regard to sanitation.

According to the information provided in the house there is huge improvement in sanitation coverage. “Sanitation Coverage as on 2.10.2014 was 38.7%. This has increased to 77.25% % as on 01.02.2018. 310 Districts, 2,772 Blocks, 1,38,799 GPs and 3,14,931 Villages have been declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) as on 01.02.2018,” the minister stated.

The minister’s statement also said that the government is focusing on behavior change in the community so it has given freedom to the States to choose their approach to attain the goal. The mission also emphasises on capacity building, especially in community approaches and programme management. It has roped in NGOs, Corporates, youth along with local government bodies to run the programme as mass movement.

“Sanitation is being prioritized amongst the overall development agenda. The Government has taken a decision to prioritise all Centrally Sponsored Schemes in ODF villages. Various other development schemes are being converged with the sanitation outcomes,” said the minister.