Civic officials hold meeting with WB team on sanitation policy

Officials of Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA &UD) and from four municipal corporations had a meeting on Monday with a World Bank team on National Urban Sanitation Policy.

According to Municipal Commissioner M.V. Satyanarayana who participated in the meeting in Hyderabad, the policy envisages totally doing away with open defecation, construction of individual and community toilets and scientific management of solid waste management.

Incidentally, the city’s plans to have a decentralised solid waste management have been delayed by a few months now.

The other cities that have participated in the meeting were Hyderabad, Tirupati and Karimnagar, which is not an urban mission city but included based on some sampling.

A World Bank team entrusted with the task made a presentation to the officials.

Mr. Satyanarayana said while constructing the toilets the most important provision was that they should have an outlet and properly connected to the underground drainage.

It was estimated that crores of rupees was required for the task taking nearly two decades for implementation. Instead it was decided that a framework would be worked out and each city must go ahead with its plans for construction of toilets.

The funds could be that of the corporation, or tapped from corporate social responsibility component or ILFS.

Officials have been assigned the task and they would come out with the framework and coordinate with the civic bodies.