Why in news?

The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, marks its 10th anniversary on October 2, 2024.

The campaign aimed to fulfill Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of a clean India, with the goal of achieving this by his 150th birth anniversary in 2019.

What’s in today’s article?

• Swachh Bharat Mission
• Achievements of Swachh Bharat Mission
• Impact of SBM
• Criticism of SBM

Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM)

• About
  • SBM was launched in 2014 to achieve an open defecation free (ODF) India in five years.
  • This progressed the country towards SDG 6.2, which aims for adequate and equitable sanitation access for all, especially for women and girls. 
  • The mission sought to transform sanitation and waste management across India through both infrastructure development and cultural shifts toward cleanliness.
• Two parts of the mission
  
  • SBM-Gramin for rural areas, managed by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, and
  • SBM-Urban for cities, overseen by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• Focus area
  
  • Building individual household toilets: To eliminate open defecation by providing toilets to all households.
  • Creating community and public toilets: Especially in high-traffic or underserved areas where individual toilets may not be feasible.
  • Solid waste management: Efficiently handling waste collection, segregation, and disposal to improve cleanliness.
  • Awareness and behavioral change campaigns: Promoting the importance of cleanliness and hygiene to encourage lasting changes in public behavior.
• Targets of SBM
  • SBM was launched with the goal of eliminating open defecation by constructing millions of household and community toilets.
    • The ODF definition required that no one in a city or ward is found defecating in the open at any time of day.
  • The mission focused on providing every household with individual toilets, cluster toilets for communities, and proper waste management systems for school and anganwadi toilets.
  • To support this, the government increased assistance from Rs 10,000 (under the previous Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan) to Rs 12,000 per toilet.
  • After the mission's initial five years, SBM 2.0 was launched in 2021, shifting the focus to creating garbage-free cities and addressing faecal sludge, plastic waste, and greywater management for enhanced urban sanitation.

Achievements of Swachh Bharat Mission

• Toilet Construction and ODF Declarations
  • Toilets Built: Over 10 crore toilets have been constructed under the mission.
  • ODF Villages: On October 2, 2019, 6 lakh villages were declared open defecation-free (ODF).
  • Urban ODF Status: By December 2019, urban India, except for cities in West Bengal, was also declared ODF by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• Targets and Financial Support
  • Individual Toilets: A total of 66 lakh individual toilets were constructed, surpassing the target of 59 lakh.
  • Financial Assistance: The Centre released Rs 57,469.22 crore to states and Union Territories for SBM-Gramin from 2014-2015 to 2018-2019. The budget for SBM-Urban was Rs 62,009 crore.
• ODF+ Achievements
  • ODF+ Declarations: 5.54 lakh villages and 3,913 cities have been declared ODF+ under SBM-Gramin 2.0 and SBM-Urban 2.0 since 2020-21.
    • ODF+ status indicates these areas also have arrangements for liquid waste management.
• Future Plans and Allocations
• SBM-G 2.0 Budget: The Cabinet approved spending of Rs 1.40 lakh crore for SBM-Gramin 2.0 from 2020-21 to 2024-2025, with Rs 52,497 crore allocated from the Drinking Water and Sanitation Department.
• SBM-U 2.0 Approval: SBM-Urban 2.0 was approved in 2021 with an allocation of Rs 1.41 lakh crore.
• Landfill Remediation Progress
  • Legacy Landfills: The goal is to clear all 2,400 legacy landfills in cities by 2025-2026.
    • So far, 30% of the area targeted for clearing has been achieved, and 41% of the waste remediation goal has been met.
  • Waste Management Statistics: According to the SBM-U dashboard, 97% of municipal wards have door-to-door waste collection, and 90% have achieved 100% segregation at source.

Impact of Swachh Bharat Mission on Health

• Deaths Averted
  • WHO estimated that from 2014 to October 2019, the Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (SBM-G) could avert approximately 3 lakh deaths related to diarrhoea and protein-energy malnutrition.
  • Prior to SBM, unsafe sanitation was responsible for an estimated 199 million cases of diarrhoea annually, a figure that has been gradually decreasing with the implementation of the mission.
• Link to Infant Mortality Reduction
  • A recent study published in Nature found a significant link between the SBM and a reduction in infant deaths.
  • The research indicated that the mission may have contributed to 60,000 to 70,000 fewer infant deaths each year from 2014 to 2020.
  • Although there was a general decline in infant mortality from 2003 to 2020, the reduction accelerated after 2015, coinciding with the SBM's initiatives.
• Toilet Access
  • According to the 2011 Census, 53.1% of households (rural and urban) lacked any form of toilets.
  • The extent of improvement in toilet access since then is yet to be assessed, as the Census 2021 has been delayed.

Criticism of SBM

• Quality of Construction
  • Substandard Toilets: Many toilets constructed under the SBM have been reported to be of poor quality, lacking proper sanitation facilities, and failing to meet the required standards.
  • Non-Functional Toilets: Some toilets were built but remain unused or are not functional due to maintenance issues or inadequate water supply.
• Data Discrepancies
  • Inflated Numbers: Critics have pointed out discrepancies in the reporting of ODF declarations and the actual ground situation. Some villages and cities declared as ODF may not meet the criteria for such status.
  • Verification Issues: The verification process for ODF status has been questioned, with claims that local officials may have exaggerated achievements to meet targets.
• Focus on Infrastructure Over Behavior Change
  • Lack of Awareness Campaigns: While the mission emphasizes building toilets, critics argue that it has not adequately focused on creating awareness and promoting behavioral changes regarding sanitation practices.
  • Cultural Resistance: In many areas, social norms and cultural practices regarding sanitation persist, and merely building toilets does not change people's behavior regarding their use.
• Implementation Challenges
  • Insufficient Monitoring: There have been calls for better monitoring and evaluation of SBM initiatives at the ground level to ensure effectiveness.
  • Local Government Capacity: Some local bodies may lack the capacity or resources to implement the mission effectively, leading to challenges in execution.
• Exclusion of Marginalized Groups
  • Accessibility Issues: Reports indicate that marginalized communities, including Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, often face barriers to accessing sanitation facilities, thus undermining the mission's objectives of inclusivity.
  • Gender Concerns: The mission has been criticized for not adequately addressing the specific sanitation needs of women and girls, such as menstrual hygiene management.
• Environmental Concerns
  • Solid Waste Management: While the mission addresses toilet construction, critics argue that it has not effectively dealt with solid waste management issues, which continue to pose significant environmental challenges.
  • Sustainability Issues: Some critics highlight that without sustainable practices, such as proper waste disposal and treatment systems, the mission's long-term success may be jeopardized.
• Delayed Census and Lack of Data
  • Impact Measurement: The delay in the Census 2021 has hindered the ability to measure the true impact of the SBM on sanitation coverage and improvements, leading to concerns over the reliability of available data.