Sanitation disastrous in India: Ramesh
November 2nd, 2011 - 4:06 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, Nov 2 (IANS) Accepting that development of sanitation facilities in the country has been a “disaster”, Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh Wednesday suggested enhanced government funding to deal with the issue.
“Sanitation is the biggest blot on the human development portfolio in India. The sanitation situation is disastrous,” said Ramesh speaking at the release of UN Human Development Report 2011 here.
“We need massive public funding for sanitation,” he said adding there has been marked progress in providing education, and some improvement in making health care and drinking water available in the country.
Making a comparison, Ramesh said while expenditure on water supply was Rs.20,000 crore annually, it was just Rs.2,000 crore on sanitation.
Success in providing education came because of the centre, which bears around 60 percent of the total spending on the sector today, he said.
“Out of 6 lakh villages in the country, only 25,000 are free from the practice of open defecation,” the minister said, adding “People do not use toilets due to cultural reasons in many parts of the country.”
The focus of the rural development ministry has now shifted to building household toilets, Ramesh noted.
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- Only 10 percent Indian villages fully sanitized: Jairam - Mar 19, 2012
- Ramesh for low-cost sanitation solutions - May 30, 2012
- Bihar has not utilised sanitation funds: CAG report - Jul 21, 2011
- Women demanding mobile phones but not toilets, says Ramesh (Lead) - Feb 17, 2012
- India's youngest ministry tasked to end open defecation - Jul 20, 2011
- Funds for building toilets to be hiked: Jairam - Apr 25, 2012
- Women can be prime movers of sanitation, says Patil - Mar 21, 2012
- Vidya Balan to promote sanitation campaign - May 03, 2012
- Cabinet approves more funds for total sanitation drive - Jun 02, 2011
- Budget trendsetting for rural sector: Ramesh - Mar 16, 2012
- Be sensitive to women's requirements: Jairam Ramesh - Apr 08, 2012
- Open defecation far from a closed chapter in Bihar - Jul 25, 2011
- President Patil emphasizes need for proper sanitation in rural areas - Mar 23, 2011
Tags: development minister, development ministry, development portfolio, disaster, drinking water, education, government funding, health care, household, India, jairam ramesh, lakh, New Delhi, nov 2, open defecation, rural development, sanitation facilities, toilets, un human development report, water supply