Lok Sabha Question No. 1936 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-05-05
Subject: Availbility of Drinking Water to Tribal population
Ministry: DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION
Asked by: JITENDRA CHAUDHURY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF DRINKING WATER & SANITATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1936 TO BE ANSWERED ON 05.05.2016

## Availability of Drinking Water to Tribal population

## 1936. SHRI JITENDRA CHAUDHURY:

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

- (a) whether 75 per cent of India's tribal population defecates in the open and 33 per cent does not have access to safe source of drinking water;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the factual data in this regard; and
- (c) the action taken by the Government to improve the situation?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION (SHRI RAM KRIPAL YADAV)

- (a) and (b) As per Census 2011, 75 % total and 82.35 % Rural and 26.18% Urban Schedule Tribes (ST) households defecate in open .

In  respect  of  rural  drinking  water  supply,  the  mandate  of  this  Ministry  is  to provide  drinking  water  supply  to  the  rural  population  only.  As  per  the information entered by the States / UTs into this Ministry's online Integrated Management Information System  (IMIS),  as  on  31.03.2016  there  are  932.53 lakh rural population in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) concentrated habitations. Out of  this  723.64  lakh  population  (which  is 77.60% )  are  covered  with  the provision of 40 litre  per capita per day  (lpcd) of safe drinking water, 177.86 lakh population (which is 19.07% ) are covered with less than 40 lpcd of safe drinking water and only 30.99 lakh tribal population (which is 3.32% ) do not have access to safe drinking water .

- (c) The  Swachh  Bharat  Mission  (Gramin)  has  been  launched  on  2nd  October, 2014, which aims at attaining Swachh Bharat by 2nd October 2019. Under this programme,  the  States  are  provided  technical  and  financial  guidance  to accelerate  rural  sanitation  coverage,  including  reduction  in  Open  Defecation and  promotion  of  solid  and  liquid  waste  management.  Under  SBM(G), incentive of Rs. 12000 are being provided to ST Households for construction of  Individual  household  latrines.  The  focus  of  the  scheme  is  on  behaviour change and usage of toilets.  A baseline survey was conducted in 2012-13 by the  States,  as  per  which,  the  rural  sanitation  coverage  in  respect  of  STs  was 30.2%. This has increased to 47.32% as on 31.03.2016.

Rural water supply is a State subject. This Ministry supplements the efforts of the States to provide drinking water supply including through piped drinking water  supply  schemes  by  providing  technical  and  financial  assistance  to  the States under the centrally sponsored National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) in rural areas of the country. The State  Governments are  vested  with  powers  to  select,  plan  and  implement  drinking  water  supply schemes  under  the  NRDWP.  In  the  criteria  of  allocation  of  funds  to  States under NRDWP, 10% weightage has been given to rural SC and ST population of States. Besides, this Ministry has made a dedicated provision of 10% of the annual allocation under NRDWP for provision of safe drinking water in the ST concentrated habitations.