Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban to Include Elimination of Public Urination | 23 Aug 2018

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has issued new norms for declaring town and cities wanting to be declared ODF+ (Open Defecation Free Plus) and ODF++ (Open Defecation Free Plus Plus) under Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) ODF+ and ODF++ protocol. Now, for the first time, SBM (Urban) will include the elimination of public urination in its agenda.

Norms under ODF

  • No visible faeces found in the environment
    Every household as well as public/community institutions using safe technology option for disposal of faeces.

Norms under ODF+

  • At any point in a day, not a single person should be defecating and/or urinating in open.
  • All community and public toilets should be properly maintained and cleaned.

Norms under ODF++

  • It includes proper treatment and management of faecal sludge/septage and sewage is safely managed and treated.
  • There should be no discharge or dumping of untreated faecal sludge/septage and sewage in drains, water bodies or open areas.

Why only in Urban Areas?

  • In the case of urban areas, the problem is not one of usage, but of availability. People are forced to do it because of the lack of clean toilets. There is a need for cleanliness, accessibility and visibility.

Concerns

  • Public urination, especially by men, is almost entirely a behaviour change issue. Even men who have access to toilets use the roads as a public urinal.

Other initiatives

Swachh Manch web portal

  • The Swachh Manch is a web-based platform, which aims to bring together every stakeholder contributing to the Swachh Bharat Mission under a common platform.
  • The platform will allow stakeholders to create/invite/participate in volunteering opportunities around neighbourhoods.
  • The Swachh Manch will also be integrated with the existing Swachhata App to act as a citizens’ grievance redressal platform.

Swachh Survekshan 2019

  • Swachh Survekshan is a ranking exercise taken up by the Government of India to assess rural and urban areas for their levels of cleanliness and active implementation of Swachhata mission initiatives in a timely and innovative manner.
  • Swachh Survekshan-Urban is conducted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
  • Swachh Survekshan –Rural is conducted by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
  • The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) had conducted ‘Swachh Survekshan-2016’ survey for the rating of 73 cities in January 2016.
  • ‘Swachh Survekshan-2017’ conducted in January-February 2017 ranking 434 cities. The recently concluded Swachh Survekshan 2018 ranked 4,203 Cities
  • Some of the interesting insights gleaned from Swachh Survekshan 2018 included the following:
    • 79% of residents find their area cleaner than last year.
    • 73,875 waste-pickers provided a formal livelihood.
    • In 137 cities, > 60% of the bulk garbage generators are doing on-site composting.