Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, aims to achieve a clean and hygienic India.
Latest Update About Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
In February 2021, the Finance Ministry announced the launch of Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) 2.0, which will fall under the ‘Health and Wellbeing’ category. The second phase of SBM-U will introduce a new element focusing on wastewater treatment, including faecal sludge management, in Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) with a population of less than 1 lakh.
What is Swachh Bharat Abhiyan?
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan holds a prominent place as one of the most renowned and impactful missions in India’s history. Initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it was launched on 2nd October 2014 with the aim of realising Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of a clean nation.
Note: On September 25, 2019, in New York, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India was honoured with the ‘Global Goalkeeper’ award by the Gates Foundation for his leadership in the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan initiative.
At the outset, the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan campaign was implemented nationwide, covering towns, rural areas, and urban areas.
This essay provides comprehensive information about the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan campaign, making it beneficial for candidates preparing for exams such as bank exams and government exams.
Functions of the Swachh Bharat Division
The responsibilities of serving as the secretariat for the Swachh Bharat Mission include:
- Providing assistance in formulating strategies related to the mission.
- Monitoring projects in collaboration with various divisions of the Ministry of Tourism.
- Conducting inspections of implemented projects.
- Engaging with other ministries, states/union territories, and stakeholders through meetings, conferences, and workshops to advance the mission through state agencies.
- Addressing parliamentary matters.
- Updating the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan/Swachhta Samiksha/Swachhta Action Plan (SAP)/e-Samiksha/CPGRAMS website/portal.
The Ministry of Tourism formulates a Swachhta Action Plan (SAP) to create awareness among tourists, students, and tourism stakeholders. The SAP includes three major activities:
- Activity-I: Conducting awareness campaigns at tourist/pilgrim centres to promote sanitation and cleanliness.
- Activity-II: Organising cleanliness activities and campaigns for school/college students at the taluk level, including training for trainers, involvement of organisations like NCC/NSS Corps, and local youth clubs.
- Activity-III: Holding seminars, conferences, and workshops with stakeholders at tourist and pilgrim centres, famous archaeological monuments/temples, forts, churches, mosques, holy tombs, gurudwaras, and identified sites to prevent open defecation and promote cleanliness in public areas and roadsides.
In the fiscal year 2020-21, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Tourism conducted virtual Swachhta Action Plan activities, including webinars and audiovisual sessions, at 55 sites (with a total of 110 activities) in 12 states/union territories. These activities aimed to raise awareness among school/college students and stakeholders of tourist centres.
The campaign to promote cleanliness awareness among tourists is expected to reach 1000 tourists, 500 students, and 60 stakeholders at each site. The Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) in Gwalior is leading the campaign.
Do You Know About the Campaigns Under Swachh Bharat Mission?
These are:
- ‘Plastic se Raksha’
- ‘Swachhta Pakhwada’
- ‘Swachhta Shramdaan’
- ‘Swachhta hee Seva’
Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) 2.0
In the Union Budget 2021, the government allocated ₹ 1,41,678 crores for Swachh Bharat Mission (U) 2.0. The components of SBM-Urban 2.0 include:
- New component – Wastewater treatment, including faecal sludge management in all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) with a population of less than 1 lakh.
- Sustainable sanitation, focusing on the construction of toilets.
- Solid Waste Management.
- Information, Education, and Communication initiatives.
- Capacity building programs.
Achievements Expected Out of SBM-Urban 2.0:
The objectives include:
- Providing ODF+ certification to all statutory towns.
- Granting ODF++ certification to all statutory towns with a population of less than 1 lakh.
- Awarding Water+ certification to half of the statutory towns with a population of less than 1 lakh.
- Rating all statutory towns with at least a 3-star Garbage Free status according to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs’ Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free cities.
- Undertaking bio-remediation of all legacy dumpsites.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Objective
The primary goal of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is to raise awareness about cleanliness and its significance.
The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan aims to ensure access to basic sanitation facilities, such as toilets, proper waste management systems, cleanliness in villages, and safe drinking water supply for every individual.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Action Plan
The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation is responsible for formulating the action plan for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. The vision is to triple the sanitation facilities by 2019, with a major focus on achieving an Open Defecation Free (ODF) India.
Action Plan Highlights:
- Enhance toilet growth percentage from 3% to 10% by 2019.
- Increase daily toilet construction from 14,000 to 48,000.
- Launch a national/state-level media campaign using audio-visual, mobile telephony, and local programs for awareness.
- Engage school children in activities promoting water, sanitation, and hygiene awareness.
Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) 1.0
Regarding the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), it falls under the Ministry of Urban Development and aims to provide sanitation and household toilet facilities across all 4041 designated towns, which have a combined population of 377 million.
The estimated cost for this mission is ₹ 62,009 crore over a span of five years, with the central government contributing ₹ 14,623 crore in assistance. The mission’s objectives include covering 1.04 crore households, providing 2.5 lakh community toilet seats and 2.6 lakh public toilet seats. Additionally, it aims to establish solid waste management facilities in every town.
At the core of this mission, there are six main components:
- Individual household toilets
- Community toilets
- Public toilets
- Municipal Solid Waste Management
- Information and Education Communication (IEC) and Public Awareness
- Capacity Building
The Urban Clean India mission aims to eliminate open defecation, convert unsanitary toilets to flush toilets, eradicate manual scavenging, and facilitate solid waste management. It places significant emphasis on promoting a behavioural change among individuals, educating them about the negative effects of open defecation and the environmental hazards associated with improper waste disposal.
To achieve these goals, urban local bodies are being empowered and strengthened to develop, implement, and manage systems that encourage private sector participation in terms of both capital investment and operational expenses.
Swachh Bharat Mission (Rural)
The Rural mission, referred to as Swachh Bharat Gramin, has the objective of achieving open defecation-free status for Village Panchayats by October 2, 2019.
The renewed focus of this rural sanitation mission is to identify and address barriers and critical issues that impact the desired outcomes. It aims to ensure that every rural household has access to individual latrines, and it aims to construct cluster and community toilets through public-private partnerships.
Recognising the unsanitary conditions in village schools, this program places special emphasis on installing toilets with basic sanitation facilities in schools. Additionally, the Clean India mission aims to construct Anganwadi toilets and implement solid and liquid waste management in all Village Panchayats.
Ranking of Cities
As part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, which was initiated in 2014, cities and towns throughout India are annually recognised as ‘Swachh Cities’ in acknowledgement of their efforts and achievements in cleanliness and sanitation.
Highlights
- Indore in Madhya Pradesh is India’s cleanest city, while Gonda in Uttar Pradesh is the filthiest.
- Out of the top 10 cleanest cities, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh have two cities each, while Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and Maharashtra each have one.
- Among the top 10 dirtiest cities, Uttar Pradesh has five cities, Bihar and Punjab have two cities each, and Maharashtra has one.
- A total of 118 out of 500 cities were found to be Open Defecation Free (ODF).
- 297 cities have achieved 100% door-to-door collection of garbage.
- Approximately 3.7 million citizens expressed their interest in the Swachh Surveksan initiative.
- There are 404 cities where 75% of residential areas were reported to be substantially clean.
- Gujarat has the highest number of cities, with 12, among the top 50 cleanest, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 11 and Andhra Pradesh with eight.
According to the Survey Among Top 50 Clean Cities:
Gujarat leads with the highest number of 12 cities, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 11 cities. Andhra Pradesh has eight cities, while Telangana and Tamil Nadu each have four cities. Maharashtra has three cities. Please note that the rankings for 2021 have not been released yet and will be made available after the completion of Swachh Survekshan 2021, which took place from 1st February to 15th February 2021.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Essay- Conclusion
This essay sheds light on several important aspects of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan:
- Sanitation should be approached as a comprehensive life cycle issue, necessitating the provision of sanitation facilities in workplaces, educational institutions, and other public spaces.
- It is crucial to invest in the right place, at the right time, and in the most suitable manner. With the approaching 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, time is of the essence.
- The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) should not become another government scheme that initially garners attention but eventually fades away without achieving its objectives.
- While the SBM has commendable goals and objectives, it is essential to address issues related to finance, implementation, and awareness in the appropriate manner.
- Every citizen of India should actively participate in the mission and promote behavioural changes towards cleanliness, irrespective of their literacy levels.
- Get in touch with Vakilsearch for any further queries about this scheme.
FAQs for Swachh Bharat Mission
1. What was the aim of the Swachh Bharat Mission?
The Swachh Bharat Mission was launched by the Prime Minister of India on October 2, 2014, with the aim of intensifying efforts to achieve widespread sanitation coverage and prioritising the importance of sanitation.
2. What is Swachh Bharat Mission 2?
Swachh Bharat Mission Urban 2.0 is an initiative with the objective of transforming cities into garbage-free environments, completely devoid of any waste. This goal was emphasised by Shri Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India.
