BHUBANESWAR: After falling behind target during the last two years, the state government has decided to construct around 77 lakh toilets under the Swachh Bharat Mission during the next three years to cover all the rural households.
A whopping Rs.11,368 crore will be spent during the three years for construction of the toilets. Principal secretary in the rural development department Madhu Sudan Padhi said the state government has set a target to construct 26 lakh toilets during 2016-17 by spending Rs.2815 crore. Similarly, 26 lakh more toilets will be constructed in 2017-18, he said and added that 76.59 lakh toilets will be built by October, 2019.
Padhi said 15 lakh toilets have been constructed by March, 2016 under the Swachh Bharat Mission which was launched in October, 2014. The project implementation plan (PIP) submitted by Padhi at the National Scheme Sanctioning Committee (NSSC) has been approved. The annual implementation plan (AIP) of Rs.2815.27 crore presented by the state government has also been approved.
The state government has also decided to construct 2490 community sanitary complexes during the period. The fund sharing pattern between the Centre and state under the Swachh Bharat Mission has been fixed at 60:40.
As against the central share of Rs.6858.43 crore, the state contribution will be Rs.4504.76 crore for implementation of the project. The contribution from the beneficiaries will be Rs.4.98 crore.
Chief secretary AP Padhi, who reviewed the construction of toilets recently, has asked the rural development department to make more villages Open Defecation Free (ODF) during the period. So far, 14,666 villages under 1967 gram panchayats have been identified to be ODF during 2016-17.
Though targets have been fixed for construction of toilets, no steps have so far been taken to make water facilities at toilets. Sources said there is a growing demand to make water available in the toilets.
Out of the 90,20,100 households in rural areas of the State, only 22,48,568 have toilet facilities. Padhi said construction of toilets has been taken up in mission mode to cover all the families in the targeted period.