States meet to strategise way forward for Swachh Bharat

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : With all 5.99 lakh villages, 699 districts, and 35 states and union territories having declared themselves open defecation free (ODF) under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) [SBM(G)] as of October 2019, the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti, organised a day long national workshop on ODF Plus – ODF Sustainability and Solid and Liquid Waste Management, on November 9, 2019, in New Delhi.

Secretaries in-charge of rural sanitation, Mission Directors and other key state level officials from 12 states attended the workshop. Opening the workshop, Parameswaran Iyer, Secretary (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti, shared that although tremendous progress had been made under the SBM(G) since the programme’s inception in 2014, the work is not yet over and it is key that all stakeholders continue their efforts to sustain safe sanitation and ensure that no one is left behind. States were encouraged to take stock of their rural sanitation situation and lay focus on sustaining the gains made under the SBM(G) and ensuring general cleanliness in the villages with solid and liquid waste management (SLWM).

Iyer also held bilateral meetings with the senior most officials representing the states along with officials from the Ministry to discuss challenges and strategies on a state-by-state basis.

ODF Plus, SBM(G)’s latest component, consists of two main tracks: ODF Sustainability (ODF-S) and Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM). ODF-S includes sustaining behaviour change for safe sanitation, leaving no one behind, and addressing gaps, ensuring community toilets for floating populations, and strengthening the capacity of all grassroots functionaries. As part of SLWM, the Mission is taking up biodegradable waste management, plastic waste management, grey water management, and fecal sludge management, according to a PIB release.

The workshop included presentation by the participating states on the their current status in rural sanitation and their plans going forward