Sanitation and Hygiene

India’s status as the world leader in poor sanitation is deplorable. It may come as a surprise to many that African countries like Rwanda and Malawi have dealt with the issue of open defecation in a better manner compared to India. 70% of rural Indians, that is around 550 million people answer nature’s call out in the open.

Between May and December 2014, 17 deaths were registered in Sambalpur due to jaundice but residents say that the death toll due to water-borne diseases is much more than that. In January 2015, the Odisha High Court issued a notice to the state government asking it to furnish details on the steps taken to check the Jaundice outbreak in Sambalpur. 

What is Jaundice?

Union Budget 2015-16 reduces funds for Water and Environment Ministry 

Vibrio cholerae is responsible for 100,000 -120,000 deaths annually, worldwide. [1] Commonly found in ponds, rivers and brackish areas, the bacterium finds its way into humans through contaminated food and water. And the result?

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.

Article Courtesy: Samerth Trust

Author: Madhu Thakar

Open defecation cannot be eliminated just by providing a hole in the ground with an oversized umbrella over it and christening it a ‘toilet’. There appears to be an unseemly hurry in building toilets all over the country without understanding the theory behind them.

“The Dalits of this country get access to water on the goodwill of the dominant caste. Water to untouchables is still miles away,” says Goldy M George, a Dalit activist and an expert on Dalit rights.

Open wells are one of the most important sources of drinking water, especially in Kerala’s coastal belt. Sadly, recent studies show that as much as 70% of these have been declared unfit due to faecal contamination.

Groundwater quality in Kodiyathur village, Kerala

A National Convention on Union Budget 2015-16 by the Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability, New Delhi held on 8th and 9th January 2015 brought together around 200 Civil Society Organisations from more than 20 States to discuss the policy asks for water and sanitation sector.