SAMBALPUR: The mission of ensuring hygienic lifestyle and improving awareness of cleanliness by doing away with the practice of open defecation in rural pockets seems to have gone disarray as construction of Individual Household Latrines (IHHLs) under Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) is moving at a snail’s pace in the district.
Reports stated that though the District Water and Sanitation Mission (DWSM) had set a target to construct 9,000 IHHLs in nine blocks of the district with 1,000 in each block under the mission in 2014-2015 fiscal, only 4,893 IHHLs have been constructed. Of all the blocks, only Jamankira was able to achieve the target by constructing 1,240 IHHLs in the last fiscal. While 666 IHHLs were constructed in Kuchinda block during the period, the number was 618 in Jujumura, 509 in Rengali, 484 in Rairakhol, 430 in Dhankauda, 392 in Maneswar, 282 in Naktideul and 272 in Bamra block.
Similarly, during 2013-2014 financial year, it was targeted to construct 1,405 IHHLs under Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan (NBA) in nine villages under eight blocks of the district. But, the DWSM succeeded in constructing only 378 IHHLs during the period.
NBA was restructured and launched as Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) on October 2 last year across the country. The estimated cost of a IHHL was raised from `10,000 to `12,000 and provision for water availability included. It covered both for Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Identified Above Poverty Line (IAPL) households belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities, small and marginal farmers, landless labourers with homestead land, physically challenged persons and families headed by women.
According to sources, about 60 per cent of rural households in the district are devoid of toilets. Ironically, not a single IHHL under NBA could be constructed till October, 2013 even though the NBA was launched on October 2, 2012. The NBA was launched to ensure facilities in rural areas and eradicate the practice of open defecation for hygiene lifestyle.
District Consultant of DWSM, Sambalpur Lingraj Dash said though the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) was launched across the country in October last year, work on construction of IHHL was initiated in the district in January this year. He said the target could not be achieved due to paucity of time.