SANITATION TOWARDS HEALTHY

NATION- AN ANALYSIS OF
GOVERENMENT POLICY IN INDIA
A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of
disease or infirmity as defined by World Health Organization. Its importance cannot be
neglected by any living being whether its human or animal. Sanitation is an important part of
health. Sanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human
contact with the hazards of wastes as well as the treatment and proper disposal of sewage
wastewater.
Hazards can be physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that
can cause health problems include human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic wastewater
(sewage, sullage, greywater), industrial wastes and agricultural wastes. Hygienic means of
prevention can be by using engineering solutions (e.g sewerage and wastewater treatment)
simple technologies (e.g. latrines, septic tanks), or even by personal hygiene practices (e.g.
simple hand washing with soap).
In nineteenth-century Europe and North America, diarrhea, cholera, and typhoid spread
through poor sanitation was the leading cause of childhood illness and death; today, such
deaths are rare in these regions. In developing countries, however, they are all too common,
and recent research suggests that poor sanitation and hygiene are either the chief or the
underlying cause in over half of the annual 10 million child deaths. Compelling, evidence based
analysis shows that hygiene and sanitation are among the most cost-effective public health
interventions to reduce childhood mortality. Access to a toilet alone can reduce child diarrhea
deaths by over 30 percent, and hand washing by more than 40 percent.
The World health Organization states that:
"Sanitation generally refers to the provision of facilities and services for the safe disposal of
human urine and feces. Inadequate sanitation is a major cause of disease world-wide and
improving sanitation is known to have a significant beneficial impact on health both in
households and across communities. The word 'sanitation' also refers to the maintenance of
hygienic conditions, through services such as garbage collection and wastewater disposal.
Methodology
The topic selected for dissertation by researcher is an analytical approach of Government of
Indias policies toward sanitation and hygiene. Her aim through this would be to provide a
handbook for all concern entity. She will highlight the issue if any uncovered under the vital
government policies under her capacity.
She will also go for a case study in a Government school of Delhi. There her focus through
questionnaire would be on current scenario of there and any grave problem, she comes across.
Through case study she will take around 50 samples and intend to collect both types of data i.e.
Qualitative and Quantitative data through primary and secondary data collection. She will
try to focus on any grave problem, if encountered during her case study.
Questionnaire Sample
1. Does this school have toilets?
Yes No
2. How many? ...........................
3. What kind? (latrines, flush toilets, etc)
............................................................................................................................................
4. Are there separate toilets for boys and girls?
Yes No
5. Do boys and girls go to the same places?
Yes No
6. Do the toilets have a place to wash hands?
Yes No
7. What kind of place (sink with running water, jug, tippy tap, etc)?
......................................
............................................................................................................................................
...........
............................................................................................................................................
...........
............................................................................................................................................
...........
8. Is there soap available?
Yes No
9. Do you attend school during periods?
Yes No
10. Does your School has proper arrangement for sanitary pad disposal and
washing facility inside toilet?
Yes No
11.Any bad experience with respect to school toilet arrangement?
______________________________________________________________________
______
______________________________________________________________________
______
12. How would you evaluate the schools handwashing facilities? (Check all that
apply):Pretty good Need improvement Not so great What handwashing facilities?

13. How would you evaluate the schools toilets? (Check all that apply):y to use
C
The researcher will cover the whole range of policies and programs made on Sanitation and
hygiene in India by Indian government, Such as:
1. Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) TSC was launched in 1999
advocating a shift from high subsidy to a low subsidy regime, greater household
involvement, demand responsiveness, and providing for the promotion of a range of toilet
options to promote increased affordability.
It also gives strong emphasis on Information, Education and Communication (IEC) and
social marketing for demand generation for sanitation facilities, to set up a delivery system
through Rural Sanitary Marts (RSMs) and Production Centers (PC) and a thrust on school
sanitation. TSC is implemented in a campaign mode-taking district as a unit so that 100
percent saturation in terms of households, Anganwadi and school toilets can be attained.
NGP stands for Nirmal Gram Puraskar. To add vigour to the TSC, in June 2003, GoI
initiated an incentive scheme for fully sanitized and open defecation free Gram Panchayats,
Blocks, and Districts called the Nirmal Gram Puraskar. The incentive pattern is based on
population criteria and it varies from Rs.50,000 to Rs.50 lakh.
2. Nirmal Gram Puraskar 2012
Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) is a comprehensive programme to ensure sanitation
facilities in rural areas with the broader goal to eradicate the practice of open defecation. To
add vigour to the TSC, in October 2003, Government of India initiated an incentive scheme
named the 'Nirmal Gram Puraskar(NGP). NGP is given to those "open defecation free"
Nirmal Gram Panchayats, Blocks, and Districts which have become fully sanitized.
3. Nirmal Bharat Yatra Jairam Ramesh, Minister for Drinking Water and
Sanitation, on September 28, 2012 announced a 51-day Nirmal Bharat Yatra. The yatra
would travel through five states and reach nine crore people spreading awareness about
sanitation facilities and practices. The Yatra would begin from Wardha in Maharashtra on 3
October and would travel to Indore, Kota, Gwalior and Gorakhpur before culminating in
Bettiah, Bihar on 19 November. The aim would be to make people aware about the benefits
of using a toilet, washing hands after using the toilet and menstrual hygiene management.
4. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)
Improved water and sanitation facilities, better housing, streamlined transportation systems
and waste management are some of the services that smaller cities in the country can look
forwards to in the next phase of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission
(JNNURM), the flagship programme of the Union Urban Development Ministry.

5. National Urban Sanitation Policy: Towards City Wide
Sanitation With a vision to ensure that all Indian cities and towns become totally
sanitized, healthy and livable, ensure and sustain public health and environmental outcomes
for all their citizens, the policy aims at development of state sanitation strategies and city
sanitation plans, creation of open defecation free cities & sanitary and safe disposal of all
human and liquid wastes.
6. School Sanitation and Hygiene Education Program
(SSHE)
School Sanitation and Hygiene Education, widely known as SSHE, is a comprehensive
programme to ensure child friendly water supply, toilet and hand washing facilities in the
schools and promote behavioral change by hygiene education. SSHE not only ensures childs
right to have healthy and clean environment but also leads to an effective learning and
enrolment of girls in particular, and reduce diseases and worm infestation. SSHE was
introduced in the Central Rural Sanitation Programme in 1999 both in TSC as well as in
allocation based component. At present, SSHE is implemented under Total Sanitation
Campaign (TSC) and given special thrust by following the proven route of teacher-children-
family-community where child is a change-agent playing an effective role on sustained basis
to spread the message of improved sanitary and healthy practice

7. Save Lives: Clean Your Hands Global Campaign
This annual global campaign on 5 May supports the World Health Organizations (WHO) effort
to improve hand hygiene in health care and thus prevent often life threatening healthcare-
associated infections (HAI).
It was launched in 2009 as a follow-up to WHOs First Global Patient Safety Challenge: Clean
Care is Safer Care work.
As of April 2012, 127 Ministers of Health have committed to reduce HAI and to support the
work of WHO, while over 40 countries and areas have started hand hygiene campaigns.
The 2013 campaign focuses on two issues:
- hand hygiene monitoring and feedback based on the WHO Hand Hygiene Self-Assessment
Framework (HHSAF)
-patient participation
The campaign website includes a series of supporting publications and resources, such as the
WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care. The researcher intend to highlight the all
aspect of above mention policies along with their achievement if any.
Sanitation and hygiene in India
Success Stories-Sanitation and hygiene in India, which have been developed and published
by United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). It presents the success stories of Total Sanitation
Campaign (TSC) and its impact all across India.
The success stories demonstrated in West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu with
such pioneering effort in sanitation was that it was managed by the Gram Panchayat, and has
undertaken many enterprising activities by promotion of community participation particularly
womens SHGS who energized their community and brought about dramatic and positive
change. It has also encouraged others to follow the path towards improved sanitation.

For instance in one of the case study it shows that with the help of youth clubs and motivators,
the concept of hygiene & sanitation was successfully promoted in Nandigram block, West
Bengal as a result the rate of adoption and use of home toilets have substantially increased. In
another similar case, the Village Panchayat of Bhutsar has been selected for Nirmal Gram
Puraskar award by Government of India. Bhustar also enjoys the unique distinction of being a
Mahila Samras village, which means its an all-woman Panchayat elected unanimously, by
virtue of which the village will benefit with a grant of Rs 2.0 lakh from the Government. Inspired
by the initiatives taken by Panchayats like Bhutsar, Government of Gujarat decided to make
Gujarat State a Nirmal Gujarat. Not just that but village in Miraj block of Sangli district in
Maharashtra has also won a state level award of Rs. 25 lakhs under the Saint Gadge Baba Village
Sanitation Campaign (SGBVSC). Also in November 2005, the village of Sakhara earned
recognition in the district, receiving an award as the first open defecation-free village from the
State Government of Maharashtra where the SHGs women understood, however, that any
behavioral change is even more difficult to sustain than to initiate but due to their vigilance,
persistence, community participation and financial support from local contributions, they
attained their sanitation goals.
There are some policies mentions above on which data will be accumulate through secondary
data generation activities.
Along with India researcher is will also intend to compare a picture of India and
neighboring countries over sanitation program and its success/failure.
Bibliography

1. SANITATION AND HEALTH IN RURAL INDIA 2011, Kumar , Publisher Uppal,

2. India Year Book 2013, Publications Division, Minisrty of Information and Broadcasting,
GOI, Price, ` 345
3. Environmental Administration, Satt(h)u Raja Mohan
4. Environment policies in India 2009, Kumar Surendra, Northern Book Center ` 440
5. Solid waste Management 2009, Kumar Surendra , Northern Book Center, ` 190.