New Delhi, Nov 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s pet project Swacch Bharat Andolan (Clean India Mission) has not been able to provide toilets to 335 million women and girls in India, a report claimed ahead of the World Toilet Day 2017. It also says that about 732 million Indians have no access to toilets and are thus forced to defecate in the open.
WaterAid’s State of the World’s Toilets 2017 report says that in India, a staggering 355 million women and girls are still waiting for a toilet; if they were all to stand in a queue, it would stretch around the Earth more than four times!”
Quoting government data, the report further states that Swacch Bharat Mission has been able to improve access to sanitation. “India also ranks in the top ten for reducing open defecation and improving access to basic sanitation. But there is still a long way to go,” says the report, titled “Out of Order”. Notably, a total of 52 million household toilets have been built between October 2014 and November 2017.
India is trailed by China where 343 million people are living without decent toilet and sanitation facilities. The third place has been taken by Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria.
As per the report, one in every three people, globally, still have no place to relieve themselves in a decent manner. The brunt of this situation is majorly bore by women and girls. Due to this, over 1.1 billion women and girls are under an increased risk of poor health, limited education, lost opportunities, vulnerability, and embarrassment of having to go out in the open.
According to chief executive for WaterAid India, VK Madhavan, India is rapidly progressing in improving sanitation under the Swachh Bharat Andolan.”We need to ensure inclusion, recognising the importance of safe and accessible toilets specific to the needs of the differently-abled, the elderly, the poorest, as well as women and adolescent girls,” he was quoted as saying in a report.
WaterAid is an international charity that engages in improving access to safe water, hygiene, and sanitation.
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