India is claiming the “world’s most improved” tag with regards to ending open defecation, thanks to progress under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Four years ago, Indians formed 60% of the global population which still defecated in the open; today, India’s share is estimated at just 20%, said Drinking Water and Sanitation Secretary Parameswaran Iyer.
“The deadline for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal [SDG] 6.2 [regarding sanitation, hygiene and open defecation] is 2030. India is on course to fulfil its share 11 years ahead of schedule,” said Mr. Iyer on Thursday.
The Swachh Bharat programme aims to end open defecation across the country by October 2, 2019, which is the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. So far, 19 States and Union Territories have been declared open defecation free (ODF) by the government. While 444 districts have been declared ODF, only nine of these are in Uttar Pradesh and four in Bihar.
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To kick off the 150th anniversary celebrations, India will host the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention in Delhi from September 29 to October 2 this year. The government has invited United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to participate, along with delegates from at least 50 countries, including both developed and developing nations.
“The success of SDG 6.2 is dependent upon India...In the global community, everyone wants to talk about the India story. How did we get the political will? How did we get public funding? How have we achieved behaviour change at such large scale?” said Mr. Iyer.
These questions form the basis for some of the technical sessions at the conference, which will be inaugurated by the President, and includes a plenary session with the Vice-President and a concluding session with the Prime Minister.
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