Lok Sabha Question No. 122 (STARRED), answered on 2018-07-26
Subject: ODF Districts/Villages
Ministry: DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION
Asked by: T.G. VENKATESH BABU

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DRINKING WATER & SANITATION

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 122 (2 nd Position) TO BE ANSWERED ON 26.07.2018

## ODF Districts/Villages

## *122. SHRI VENKATESH BABU T.G.:

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

(a) the total number of districts/villages in the country declared as Open Defecation Free (ODF), State-wise;

(b)  whether the Government has fixed any target to achieve ODF status by 2019 and if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether as per the UNICEF estimates, lack of sanitation is responsible for the death of over one lakh children in the country and if so, the details thereof;

(d)  whether the Government has taken steps to encourage the usage of toilet and reduce  the  number  of  people  practising  open  defecation  in  the  rural  areas  of  the country; and

(e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER FOR DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION (SUSHREE UMA BHARATI)

(a) to (e)   A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## Statement referred to in the reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question No.122 due for reply on 26.07.2018.

(a)As per the SBM-G MIS, 417 districts and 4,00,820 villages across the country have  been  declared  as  Open  Defecation  Free  (ODF)  as  on  23.7.2018.   State-wise number of districts and villages declared ODF is given at Annexure.

(b)       Under Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) [SBM(G)] Government has targeted to achieve ODF status by 2nd October, 2019.

(c)         UNICEF brought out a global report on child deaths from pneumonia and diarrhoea in Nov 2016. In this report it also  quotes a figure of 1,17,300 diarrhoea deaths among children in India in 2015. Lack of sanitation is one of the causes of diarrhoeal deaths among children. The report also adds that preventative measures to  improve  access  to  clean  drinking  water,  sanitation  and  hygiene  are  now resulting in fewer  diarrhoea-related  deaths.   In  India,  rural  sanitation  coverage  has increased  from  38.7%  in  October  2014  to  over  88%  in  July  2018.  Over  4  lakh villages  and  418  districts  have  been  declared  Open  Defecation  Free  (ODF).  This steep increase in sanitation coverage is expected to lead to a significant decrease in mortality and morbidity, especially among young children.

(d)  &  (e)   Under SBM(G), the focus has  shifted from mere construction of toilets to  achieving  ODF  communities  and  sustainable  use  of  toilets  through  collective behaviour  change  among  people.  There  is  a  renewed  focus on  Information Education  and  Communication  (IEC)  under  the  programme  in  order  to  create awareness and behavior change up to grass root levels.  The sanitation programme has  become  a  'Jan  Andolan'  through  extensive  mass  media  campaigns,  various national level events (like Swachhata hi Seva, Swachhathon, Satyagrahase Swachhagraha among other s.) and through increased focus on Interpersonal Communication.

Presently, around 4 lakhs Swachhagrahis (village level motivators) are involved in creating awareness and monitoring the usage of toilets in the villages.  It has also been aimed to increase the number of Swachhagrahis to 6.5 lakhs so as to engage one Swachhagrahi per village in rural India. The social media such as twitter (@swachbharat), Facebook (Swachh Bharat Mission) and WhatsApp - are being extensively used for sharing innovative ideas and cross learning.  The Government officials are undertaking regular field visits and morning follow ups to ensure  usage  of  toilets  by  the  people.  Nigrani  Samitis  have  been  formed  in  the villages to monitor usage of toilets.

There is  also  an  increased  focus  on  capacity  building  of  all  the  functionaries  and stakeholders including mason training under the programme. The capacity building programmes have been reoriented to achieve ODF outcomes through community approach. Various national, regional and State level workshops have been conducted to encourage cross sharing of best practices and dissemination of information. The  programme  also promotes safe and eco-friendly onsite sanitation technologies and  availability of water in the toilets, for ensuring sustainable use of toilets.

## Statement referred in part (a) of the reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question No.122 due for reply on 26-07-2018

State/UT-wise no. of ODF declared districts and villages as on 23.7.2018

| S.N.   | State/UT          |   ODF declared districts |   ODF declared villages |
|--------|-------------------|--------------------------|-------------------------|
| 1      | A &NIslands       |                        3 |                     192 |
| 2      | Andhra Pradesh    |                       13 |                   18841 |
| 3      | Arunachal Pradesh |                       20 |                    5389 |
| 4      | Assam             |                       12 |                   13992 |
| 5      | Bihar             |                        1 |                    6045 |
| 6      | Chandigarh        |                        1 |                      13 |
| 7      | Chhattisgarh      |                       27 |                   18769 |
| 8      | D &NHaveli        |                        1 |                      69 |
| 9      | Daman &Diu        |                        2 |                      26 |
| 10     | Goa               |                        0 |                      22 |
| 11     | Gujarat           |                       33 |                   18261 |
| 12     | Haryana           |                       22 |                    6908 |
| 13     | Himachal Pradesh  |                       12 |                   15925 |
| 14     | Jammu &Kashmir    |                        9 |                    4609 |
| 15     | Jharkhand         |                       11 |                   18528 |
| 16     | Karnataka         |                       20 |                   20768 |
| 17     | Kerala            |                       14 |                    2027 |
| 18     | Lakshadweep       |                        1 |                       9 |
| 19     | Madhya Pradesh    |                       21 |                   30811 |
| 20     | Maharashtra       |                       34 |                   40500 |
| 21     | Manipur           |                        2 |                    1834 |
| 22     | Meghalaya         |                       11 |                    6028 |
| 23     | Mizoram           |                        8 |                     695 |
| 24     | Nagaland          |                        6 |                    1147 |
| 25     | Odisha            |                        2 |                   11509 |
| 26     | Puducherry        |                        0 |                     230 |
| 27     | Punjab            |                       22 |                   13726 |
| 28     | Rajasthan         |                       33 |                   42869 |
| 29     | Sikkim            |                        4 |                     441 |
| 30     | Tamil Nadu        |                       27 |                   11892 |
| 31     | Telangana         |                       11 |                    5027 |
| 32     | Tripura           |                        0 |                      42 |
| 33     | Uttar Pradesh     |                        7 |                   34678 |
| 34     | Uttarakhand       |                       13 |                   15473 |
| 35     | West Bengal       |                       14 |                   33525 |
| Total  |                   |                      417 |                  400820 |