Drinking Water & Sanitation
About Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
Rural sanitation came into focus in the Government of India in the World Water Decade of 1980s. The Central Rural Sanitation Programme was started in 1986 to provide sanitation facilities in rural areas.To accelerate the efforts to achieve universal sanitation coverage and to put focus on sanitation, the Prime Minister of India launched the Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October, 2014. The Mission Coordinator for SBM is Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MDWS) with two Sub-Missions, the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) and the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban). Together, they aim to achieve Swachh Bharat by 2019, as a fitting tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th Birth Anniversary.
In Rural India, this would mean improving the levels of cleanliness through Solid and Liquid Waste Management activities and making villages Open Defecation Free (ODF), clean and sanitised.
The aim of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) is to achieve a clean and Open Defecation Free (ODF) India by 2nd October, 2019.
Objectives:
The main objectives of the TSC are as under:
To bring about an improvement in the general quality of life in the rural areas, by promoting cleanliness, hygiene and eliminating open defecation.
To accelerate sanitation coverage in rural areas to achieve the vision of Swachh Bharat by 2nd October 2019.
To motivate communities to adopt sustainable sanitation practices and facilities through awareness creation and health education.
To encourage cost effective and appropriate technologies for ecologically safe and sustainable sanitation.
To develop, wherever required, community managed sanitation systems focusing on scientific Solid & Liquid Waste Management systems for overall cleanliness in the rural areas.
To create significant positive impact on gender and promote social inclusion by improving sanitation especially in marginalized communities.