Lok Sabha Question No. 4095 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-08-10
Subject: Coersion under SBM
Ministry: DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION
Asked by: M. K. RAGHAVAN

## Government of India

## Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4095

TO BE ANSWERED ON 10-08-2017

## Coersion under SBM

## 4095. SHRI M.K. RAGHAVAN:

## Will the Minister of DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION be pleased to state :

- (a)  whether  the  people  in  rural  areas  are  being  coerced  by  the  officials  to  construct  toilets under Swachh Bharat Mission including threatening them with circulation in social media;
- (b) if so, the action taken against the erring officials;
- (c) the financial assistance extended to individual households to construct toilets;
- (d) whether the compulsion is leading to rampant debt among the people; and
- (e) if so, the remedial action proposed to be taken by the Government to ease the burden on the public to achieve the Government's target under SBM?

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF DRINKING WATER & SANITATION

## ANSWER (SHRI RAMESH CHANDAPPA JIGAJINAGI)

- (a)  &  (b).  The  Swachh  Bharat  Mission  (Gramin),  SBM  (G)  aims  at  bringing  about  an improvement  in  the  general  quality  of  life  in  the  rural  areas,  by  promoting  cleanliness, hygiene and eliminating open defecation. It also aims at accelerating the sanitation coverage to achieve the vision of Swachh Bharat by 2 nd October, 2019. The programme focuses upon motivating  the  communities  and  Panchayati  Raj  Institutions  through  awareness  creation, health  education  and  bringing  about  behaviour  change.  The  SBM  (G)  guidelines  provide flexibility  to  the  states  in  the  implementation  of  the  Scheme  so  as  to  enable  the  States  to utilise  the  provisions  under  the  Mission  effectively  without  any  kind  of  violations.  The mission objective is to associate the public for the effective implementation of the scheme.
- (c) Under Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) {SBM(G)}, there is a provision for providing an incentive  of  Rs.12,000  for  the  construction  of  individual  household  latrine  (IHHL)  to  all Below  Poverty  Line  (BPL)  households  and  to  identified  Above  Poverty  Line  (APL) households  (all  SCs  /STs,  small  and  marginal  farmers,  landless  labourers  with  homestead, physically handicapped and women-headed households).
- (d) and (e) The financial assistance provided by the Government under the programme is in the  form  of  incentive  to  individual  households  undertaking  the  construction  of  toilets.  The primary objective is to bring about behavioural change motivating the people to use toilets. Apart from the funds provided under the Scheme, the SBM (G) guidelines also provides for other sources of funds which can be utilised.

The guidelines provide for Revolving funds. This fund can be accessed by APL households not  covered  for  Incentives  under  the  guidelines.  The  Revolving  fund  can  be  given  to Societies, Self Help Groups or other groups as decided by the States, whose credit worthiness is  established,  for  providing  cheap finance to their members for the construction of toilets. Loan  from  this  fund  is  recovered  in  12-18  instalments.  States  also  have  the  flexibility  to decide  the  other  terms  and  conditions  for  sanction  of  the  Revolving  fund.  Similarly,  the guidelines also have provision for Micro-financing of toilet construction to enable provision of low cost financing to individual households for construction of toilets and to leverage the network of financial institutions.