Analysis: Collaboration Key for a Clean India

Sanitation infrastructure in India’s sprawling slums remains a massive challenge. Credit: Malini Shankar/IPSBy Neeraj JainNEW DELHI, Feb 24 2015 (IPS)Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to action for a 100 percent Open Defecation Free (ODF) India by 2019 was announced as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) or Clean India Campaign last year.With 60 percent of all those practising open defecation globally residing in India, this task is particularly crucial, yet also challenging.We need to think how we are going to engage and influence the behaviour of such a massive audience. It probably requires the most ambitious behaviour change campaign ever attempted in the history of any nation.Inadequate waste management leads to the contamination of water sources, contributing to diarrhoeal diseases that claim the lives of 186,000 children every single year.With nowhere safe to go to the toilet, women and girls are often put in a vulnerable position as they seek somewhere private to relieve themselves.A lack of adequate sanitation also has a substantial impact on economic development, with money repeatedly being lost due to workers being sick or taking time off to care for sick family members, not to mention the cost of medical treatment.So is the 2019 target actually achievable?It may sound like a tall order but we won’t know until we try. We need to look at the ways to make it work – implement this seemingly ambitious plan in an effective manner to make the target ac...

Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - February 24, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Neeraj Jain Tags: Active Citizens Asia-Pacific Civil Society Development & Aid Environment Headlines Health Human Rights Natural Resources Population Poverty & MDGs TerraViva United Nations Water & Sanitation Women's Health Child mortality Ind Source Type: news