The launch of the Swachh Bharat Mission in October 2014, aimed at changing the sanitation landscape of the country was welcomed both with delight as well as skepticism. The idea was to make India open defecation free by 2019. To this end, the union government set aside close to two lakh crore rupees to achieve the lofty targets of constructing over 1.1 crore individual hosehold as well as public toilets in both rural and urban areas.
The Swachh Bharat Kosh
Closely following the launch, a dedicated fund was set up to aid in the mission’s implementation. The ‘Swachh Bharat Kosh’ (SBK) is expected to channelize funds from philanthropists and organizations looking to spend money as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitments towards sanitation projects.
The Union Finance Ministry issued operational guidelines spelling out the various aspects of the fund and the manner in which the money under it would be spent.
- The fund will support the construction of community as well as individual toilets in urban and rural areas
- Funds from the SBK will be used to improve sanitation in schools with special emphasis on toilets for girl students
- Training and skill development of vendors will be supported
- Funds for providing water supply to toilets can be drawn from the SBK
- Money from the fund can also be utilized for related activities such as managing solid and liquid waste, improving cleanliness and hygiene in rural and urban areas
- Payments to the fund may be made via internet banking, online transfers, writing cheques or drawing out demand drafts
The states can draw from the fund by applying to the concerned Ministries to supplement the resources of the concerned departments. Line ministries in charge of the programme have been vested with the responsibility of monitoring fun utilization.
Detailed information regarding sanction orders and fund utilization is available on the Finance Ministry website.
Please download the detailed Guidelines from the attachment listed below.