No child dies of diarrhoea due to open defecation: Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil

Union Minister for Jal Shakti C R Paatil

Credit: X/@CRPaatil

New Delhi: Jal Shakti Minister C R Paatil on Tuesday claimed that no child in India now dies of diarrhoea due to open defecation as the government constructed over 11 crore toilets under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin).

“World Health Organization’s report for the first five years shows that every year 60,000-70,000 children who used to go out for defecation died due to diarrhoea. Now, the whole situation has changed. No child dies of diarrhoea due to open defecation," the minister told the media here.

60 crore people have stopped going out to defecate due to the toilets built under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin), he said.

Swachh Bharat Mission has made remarkable strides, with over 55 per cent of villages declared ‘Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus Model’, 5 lakh waste collection vehicles in operation, and significant progress in greywater and plastic waste management, he said.

"Plastic waste management is being implemented in 3,000 blocks across the country, with plastic waste being used instead of bitumen in road construction. Under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, nearly 40,000 km of rural roads have been built using this sustainable technique, with 13,000 km completed in the last two years alone. These innovations showcase our commitment to sustainability and the future of sanitation in India," he said.

He also announced that marking the completion of 10 years of the launch of the Swachh Bharat Mission, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in Swachh Bharat Diwas 2024 and lay the foundation stone for several sanitation and cleanliness projects here on Wednesday.

It will include projects worth over Rs 6,800 crore, aimed at enhancing urban water and sewage systems under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0, 10 projects worth over Rs 1,550 crore focused on improving water quality and waste management in Ganga basin areas under National Mission for Clean Ganga and 15 Compressed Biogas (CBG) Plant projects worth over Rs 1,332 crore under GOBARdhan Scheme.

Under Swachhata Hi Seva 2024, he said over 19 lakh programmes have been completed with public participation of more than 17 crore people. Transformation of around 6.5 lakh cleanliness target units has been achieved. Nearly 1 lakh Safai Mitra Suraksha Shivirs have also been organised, benefitting over 30 lakh Safai Mitras, the minister said.

Further, over 45 lakh trees have been planted under the Ek Ped Maa ke Naam campaign, he said.