SulabhENVIS Centre

THIS YEAR, the garbage disposal and sanitation of the city might improve manifold. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is planning to introduce a new scheme for garbage disposal. If the scheme, that is being initiated on an experimental basis in Dwarka, Civil Lines, Vasant Kunj and Rohini, is a success, the city would be free of garbage dumps.
The MCD is planning to initiate an anti-littering drive and a public awareness campaign and is also upgrading the waste disposal mechanism. The agency is adopting this three-pronged plan for a ‘clean Delhi’ with an eye on the Commonwealth Games 2010.

Says Vijender Gupta, chairman, MCD Standing Committee, “We are planning to initiate a door-to-door garbage collection scheme where each home would be provided with two bins, one each of biodegradable and nonbiodegradable waste. The household waste would be taken directly to landfill sites, making the colony garbage dumps redundant.” The MCD plans to share the cost of the bin with the household on a 50-50 basis.

According to Gupta, the scheme would be outsourced to a private agency and implemented by March. “On the surface it seems like a good idea. But we have to see how it is implemented. Also, the cost of the garbage bin should be subsidised and garbage collection should be thorough,” says Ajay Sagar, a member from Dwarka, Sector 14, residents’ welfare as sociation. There is a proposal to place dustbins of 1,000 litre capacity at markets and other busy areas.

To crack down on littering and urinating in public places, civic inspectors will be deployed in various parts of the city who will also have the power to im , pose on-the-spot fines. “A circular has been issued in this regard last week,” said Gupta. In addition the MCD would also launch a campaign to educate the public on how to keep the city clean.

In a rare success story, a group of scavenger-women have now become beauticians in parlours in Rajasthan, and are earning recognition and respect of not only their family members but also their clients

It was with a sense of pride, jubilation and relief, that 28-year old Laxmi shed her baggage of night soil that she would collect from various localities and entered a beauty parlour where she is known as one of the beauticians. Surprising as it may sound, Laxmi, who was once a scavenger woman is now a beautician at a beauty parlour in Alwar. Says Laxmi, “My in-laws forced me into the dirty job and it made me feel extremely dirty and undignified for about a decade. But, life changed completely after I took training and then started working in a beauty parlour. The world has now become a beautiful place to live in.” Neetu Goyar who was also a scavenger like Laxmi, agrees that life has suddenly looked up for them. And these women seem to be spreading this happiness around them, even as Neetu says, “For just Rs 500 a month, I was pressurised to take up this job by my inlaws. And when I first told them that I am planning to leave it forever and take up a job in a beauty parlour, they didn’t find the idea very appealing. But now, I am well paid and everyone around me is happy. They respect me a lot too. Our country might have got independence decades ago, but women like us have become free only now.” While on the one hand, this freedom has filled their eyes with new dreams, on the other, it has made them very responsible – personally and socially. Lalita Nanda, another success story like Neetu and Laxmi, beams, “I have learnt to read and write now, and I don’t look down upon myself. I know the meaning and importance of hygiene that helps me keep my family and myself away from illnesses. Moreover, I can send my children to school and dream of them becoming something in life.” Others like Rajni Athwal, have taken their dream a step further. “I dream of opening a parlour of my own someday,” she says with pride. Having seen a better life, people like Laxmi want to help others find a dignified way of living. “I want to create awareness among women, who have been forced to take up the dirty job, that there are other career options available for them,” says Laxmi, who was one of the 36 special invitees at a conference marking the United Nations International Year of Sanitation in the New York and had even sashayed down the runway alongside professional models in a display of recognition and respect. Overwhelmed by the socio-economic emancipation of these scavengers, Bindeshwar Pathak, the founder of an NGO working with them closely, says “With this development, I can say Gandhiji’s dream of equality got fulfiled. Though there is still a long way to go, it is a step forward in that direction.” But the larger goal of dispelling untouchability can only be achieved by individual cooperation of people. Agrees Jasbeer Kaur, a regular client of one of the beauty parlours where these women work. “They are extremely talented and that’s what matters, not their past. In fact, all of us are responsible for their condition and only when we contribute our bit for their upliftment will the situation improve.” shweta.thakur2@timesgroup.com

BY N.C. Saxena

Toilets are not an issue for you and me. But for millions in India’s villages, the absence of a toilet is a reality. For many it’s not even a need that is felt. For others, it is a question of financial priorities. Over 700 million people in India still live without proper sanitation. The resulting poor hygiene is responsible for approximately 1,000 children under five years dying every day due to diarrhoea alone. Poor hygiene, lack of sanitation and inadequate or unsafe water together contribute to about 88 per cent of diarrhoea deaths.
The fact is that sanitation issues did not command sufficient public investment till the end of the 1970s. A total 180 million man-days — that’s Rs 12 billion rupees — are lost every year due to sanitation-related diseases. Sanitation acquired importance only in the 1980s when the Government of India encouraged the construction of household toilets in the villages under the Central Rural Sanitation Programme.
However, the programme did not become a major success as it promoted a single design at a single price and gave a high subsidy with limited funds available. As a result, the government was only able to allot one or two latrines per village, and this often went to the prominent members.
The subsequent Total Sanitation Campaign has sought to increase toilet construction and usage by shifting to low subsidies and a greater stress on creating household involvement through awareness. Its success is evident from the fact that while in 1997-98 only about 1.3 million toilets were built, in 2003-04 the figure jumped to over 6 million, followed by over 9 million toilets being built in 2006-07. It is expected that the number of household toilets constructed during 2007-08 may actually exceed a crore.
The key to this success has been the involvement of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRI) under the Nirmal Gram Puraskar, the incentive award scheme. The PRIs have been motivated to promote sanitation in their community by influencing behaviour change and creating a demand. The Nirmal Gram Puraskar awards have seen an enormous increase in the number of awardees from across the country — from 40 PRIs awarded in 2004-05 to over 700 in 2005-06. Approximately, 30,000 PRIs have already applied for the award in 2008. All this has meant that states like West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh are close to achieving the ‘Millennium Development Targets’.
While it is important to celebrate the gains made in increasing sanitation coverage nationwide, we must not forget that this is only the beginning. There is a long way to go before total sanitation is achieved. The challenge ahead is not only to maintain the momentum, but it is also to accelerate the pace of sanitation coverage.
Although 40 million households have been reached so far, there are still more than 70 million households across the country without toilets. The Total Sanitation Campaign and Nirmal Gram Puraskar have shown that sanitation is achievable. But before we turn the page, we must know that the campaign needs consistent and dedicated support. What we need is not a spring cleaning but a sea change conducted on a war footing.

NC Saxena is Former Secretary, Planning Commission