From Pramod Dabrase, Urban Administration and Development Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal
Posted 12 March 2009
I work with the Urban Administration and Development Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh. The Department has launched an Integrated Urban Sanitation Programme in Madhya Pradesh with the goal to achieve totally sanitized and healthy cities and towns. The programme was launched on 13 February 2009 in Bhopal.
The importance of the programme is underscored by the fact that dignitaries including the Chief Minister, the Urban Development Ministers, Principle Secretary, Commissioner, Project Director, Padmashree Ishwarbhai Patel, Municipal Commissioners/Chief Municipal Officers of all the 338 urban local bodies, and civil society representatives were present at the launch.
As a part of the programme each city will have to prepare their City Sanitation Plan (CSP) and implement it. The programme is demand-based and has already been initiated in a few cities on pilot basis and all the cities in Madhya Pradesh will be covered over the next five years. The focus of the programme is on:
- Ending the practice of open defecation in cities and towns by constructing individual, community and public toilets
- Safe disposal of solid and liquid waste including human excreta
- Improve the quality of life for sanitation workers
- Encourage community, women in particular, and civil society participation in awareness generation, hygiene education and creation and maintenance of sanitation infrastructure
- Institutional arrangements and capacity building of municipal staff for effective programme implementation
- Encourage public private partnership wherever possible and feasible
- Bring inter-departmental coordination for effective outcomes.
I would like to seek suggestions from the members about their experiences regarding the development of City Sanitation Plans, keeping the above points in mind. Members are requested to share their experiences on the following:
- How can we develop Capital Investment Plans and what are the operation and maintenance expenditure forecasts?
- What are the sanitation based livelihood and entrepreneurship models available?
- What are the success stories on urban sanitation?
Your inputs will help us to help us to learn from the best practices in other states and to implement the Urban Sanitation Programme effectively.
Please see attachment below for the responses.