The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) was launched in 2014 by the Government of India to eliminate the age-old menace of open defecation and promote solid waste management. The nationwide campaign has come a long way with its tagline which translates to "A step towards cleanliness". It emphasises the role of both residential and community restrooms in bringing about behavioural change.
Why are toilets important?
Improper disposal of wastes can lead to contamination of land, soil, water and air leading to a splurge of diseases. Open defecation and poor sanitation can spread diarrhoea, intestinal diseases, cholera, hepatitis, polio, and trachoma. The entire community and its resources get affected. Improper waste disposal fuels the infection cycle of many bacteria and other germs, which can be spread via contaminated soil, food, water, and insects like flies.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that diarrheal diseases cause about five lakh deaths worldwide each year. India has the highest rate of diarrhoea-related deaths among children under five. These diseases prevent the children from absorbing necessary nutrition from their food, resulting in undernutrition and stunting. Stunted children have poor physical and cognitive development which in turn affects their educational outcomes. The social and economic impact of stunting on the community can be humongous.
Toilets provide women and young girls with privacy and safety, which is especially important. The risk of harassment while defecating in the open during dawn and dusk can be reduced with access to toilets. Apart from managing their menstrual hygiene and personal health, toilets help uplift the health, safety and dignity of women and young girls.
The convenience of having a nearby latrine regardless of day or night, rain or sun cannot be stressed. Accessible toilets are all the more important for the aged and differently abled.
According to the World Bank, inadequate sanitation cost India nearly 6% of its GDP in 2006. Hence, it is clear that ending open defecation is important not just for communities but also for the socio-economic progress of the nation. The goal of the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan is to create a demand for toilets and wastewater management to end open defecation, which is still considered "normal" in many areas.
Impact of installing toilets under Swacch Bharath Abhiyan
In the last seven years, since the launch of SBA, India has become open defecation free and we are nearing achieving SDG 6.2 which aims for adequate and equitable sanitation access for all, especially for women and girls.
Over 100 million rural homes and 500 million people now have access to toilets thanks to SBA. As per a UNICEF report of 2018, households in ODF villages saved about 50,000 INR a year. Other benefits include fewer illnesses and time saved waiting for treatment or travelling.
SBA has created approximately 7.5 million full-time jobs, benefiting a greater number of people in the community. The massive door to door garbage collection drives and surveys like Swachh Survekshan has helped improve the sanitation in urban areas.
According to the Ministry of Jal Shakti, as of October 2, 2019, all villages in India had declared themselves Open Defecation Free (ODF). Under SBA Grameen over 10 crore individual latrines were constructed between 2014 and 2019. SBA phase 2 for the period from 2020-21 to 2024-25 aims to focus on ODF sustainability by developing solid and liquid waste management (SLWM) in the villages.
SBA has brought dignity and social upliftment to the people involved in the process. By involving rag pickers, transgenders and other downtrodden sections of society in the swacchta mission, inclusivity and respect for them have increased.
By constructing separate toilets for women and men at schools, parks and other public places, the mission has tried to bring down the gender disparity. It is expected that the enrollment of girls in schools and higher education institutions will increase which will have a positive impact on society as a whole.
Since the introduction of the SBA, the number of deaths caused by poor sanitation has dropped to about 50,000 in 2017-2018 according to a study by WHO. An association between improved sanitation coverage and better health outcomes is evident in the study.
When the Abhiyan was first introduced in 2014, people were hesitant to believe in the initiative. Seven years later, India is free of open defecation, safe drinking water is available in every home, and our cities are becoming cleaner by the day. By actively involving communities, providing flexible choices of toilets based on the family's financial position and capacity building at grass root level SBA has been able to gauge a behavioural change in the population. Active campaigns, advertisements and movies with the Swacch message have helped the mission gain momentum with the people.
Cleaner cities and villages also mean a greater tourist value which can in turn help create a positive global image of India. With the mission extending to include grey water management and scientific processing of wastes, the environmental benefits will be even better.
Access to sanitary facilities is economically and environmentally beneficial as it impacts other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as environmental protection and promotion of upward movement for vulnerable populations. Challenges related to coercion have been mitigated by government’s corrective actions.
For the infrastructure of toilets and sanitation to remain sustainable and eco-friendly, sustainable economic principles and 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) must be incorporated. There is no doubt that the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan is a huge success. In the end, all these efforts contribute to creating a clean, healthy, and beautiful nation for all of us.