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 "Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Swachh Bharat mission, pm modi, narendra modi, sanitation")
Illustration by Binay Sinha
The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), launched on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday ten years ago, marks its 10th anniversary on Wednesday, providing a valuable opportunity to reflect on its achievements and challenges.
The initiative, comprising two components: Gramin (rural) and Urban, aimed at eliminating open defecation, converting unsanitary toilets, eradicating manual scavenging, enhancing solid waste management, and promoting behavioural change regarding sanitation.
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For the 2023-24 financial year, Rs 7,192 crore was allocated for the rural sector, while Rs 5,000 crore was earmarked for urban areas. Allocation to the rural part of the mission saw a rebound in 2022-23 after declining for four consecutive years, while the urban segment saw a marked increase in funds only in 2023-24 (revised estimates). The budget allocation for this year is projected to see a minuscule increase in the rural part of the scheme, while at the outset, the urban component is estimated to see a huge rise. However, allocation to urban areas saw a massive downward revision in the revised estimates of 2023-24 from the budget estimates, by around 49 per cent.
Open defecation was a central focus of the initiative, and the government declared India ODF (Open Defecation Free) in 2019. Although there has been a decrease in open defecation practices, data from the World Bank shows that 11 per cent of the population still practised it in 2022, mostly in rural areas.
This remains higher than in neighbouring countries like Pakistan (6.8 per cent) and Afghanistan (8.8 per cent). The government now aims to make villages ODF Plus, which in addition requires solid and liquid waste management systems; currently, 93 per cent of villages have achieved this status, according to official data.
Additionally, 78 per cent of waste is processed at the all-India level. The government has exceeded its toilet construction target of 507,587 by 25 per cent, completing 636,826 toilets. Moreover, access to toilet facilities has improved significantly, with 82.5 per cent of households reporting access in 2019-21, up from 45 per cent in 2004-05. However, urban centres fare better in this regard, with 95.6 per cent access compared to 76 per cent in rural India.
Experts note that improvements in sanitation facilities have led to a threshold effect, where district-level toilet coverage of 30 per cent or more correlates with significant reductions in infant and child mortality rates. Studies reveal that districts with over 30 per cent toilet coverage under SBM experienced reductions of 5.3 in the infant mortality rate (IMR) and 6.8 in the under-5 mortality rate (U5MR) per thousand live births. Data from the World Bank indicates a decline in these rates, but the reductions have not been as dramatic post-implementation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
Parliament passed an Act to ban manual scavenging in 2013, but it has not been eradicated in all districts so far.
First Published: Oct 01 2024 | 9:46 PM IS
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