Take corrective steps on toilet data, states told
A serious gap between the actual number of toilets constructed and the number on the sanitation ministry's website in states such as Gujarat, Karnataka, Jharkhand and Rajasthan has been revealed by a field survey report of select districts commissioned by the rural development ministry .National level monitors (NLMs) reported that in Arunachal and Manipur, the gap between official data and the monitors is over 41%. The situation is also worrisome in Jharkhand, Gujarat, Karnataka and Rajasthan with a mismatch of 19%, 23%, 27% and 28% respectively . Barring Andhra, J&K, MP, Meghalaya, Mizo ram and Nagaland where a higher number of la where a higher number of latrines have been constructed, it is the reverse in other states. Only in Sikkim, which is the first state to become open defecation free (ODF), both the NLMs report and the Swachh Bharat mission-ministry of sanitation data match. The findings provide planners a reason to seek course corrections, revamp programme design and improve follow up on the Modi government's ambitious Swachh Bharat mission.
Rural development ministry empanels retired civil and defence service officers and reputed non-government institutions with experience in rural development programmes as individual and institutional National level monitors (NLMs). The NLMs covered 24.22 lakh households randomly across select districts in each state and they found 51.46% of them having individual latrines.
Some of the findings of this report are quite surprising. For example, it mentions that Khagaria district in Bihar has the highest percentage of household toilets at 98% and Lakhisarai only 2%. Khagaria is one of the most backward districts in the state.
The report also mentions that 48% of the households surveyed by them are not using latrines despite having one. This strongly contradicts National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) data that shows nearly 96%of the population in villages and nearly 99% in urban areas who have access to sanitary toilets do use them.
Meanwhile, taking note of the difference between the MIS data and NLMs report, the sanitation ministry has written to two dozen states to go through the NLMs report and “take corrective measures“.
On the status of solid and liquid management in rural areas, the NLMs report finds that such a system is non-existent in more than 76% of the villages surveyed by them.
Rural development ministry empanels retired civil and defence service officers and reputed non-government institutions with experience in rural development programmes as individual and institutional National level monitors (NLMs). The NLMs covered 24.22 lakh households randomly across select districts in each state and they found 51.46% of them having individual latrines.
Some of the findings of this report are quite surprising. For example, it mentions that Khagaria district in Bihar has the highest percentage of household toilets at 98% and Lakhisarai only 2%. Khagaria is one of the most backward districts in the state.
The report also mentions that 48% of the households surveyed by them are not using latrines despite having one. This strongly contradicts National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) data that shows nearly 96%of the population in villages and nearly 99% in urban areas who have access to sanitary toilets do use them.
Meanwhile, taking note of the difference between the MIS data and NLMs report, the sanitation ministry has written to two dozen states to go through the NLMs report and “take corrective measures“.
On the status of solid and liquid management in rural areas, the NLMs report finds that such a system is non-existent in more than 76% of the villages surveyed by them.
Source: Times of India, 19-08-2016
