Departments to list cleanliness steps in budget proposals

SAP would be have to prepared by every ministry and department with detailed timelines and budgets

The central government has instructed all its ministries and departments to allocate a portion of their budget proposals for cleanliness initiatives and prepare a comprehensive plan for the next fiscal year.

Officials said a Swatch Action Plan (SAP) would be have to prepared by every ministry and department with detailed achievable timelines and budgets needed. These will form part of the ministry's budget allocation for the next financial year.

"The ministry of agriculture has, as part of its cleanliness initiative, proposed a programme for clean mandis and compost waste management systems in all mandis. Similar programmes have to be prepared by all other ministries and departments," said P Iyer, secretary, ministry of drinking water and sanitation.

He said the ministry was also planning to launch a cleanliness index for villages where villagers would rate themselves on four major parameters every year to be independently verified by an agency appointed by the central government.

The parameters are open defecation, cleanliness near houses, cleanliness in public places, and stagnant water sources.

Villages will be ranked on a scale of 1-100. The panchayats would meet through an aam sabha where this rating would be done, Iyer said.

Drinking water scheme to get a big push

1. The National Rural Drinking Water Project (NRDWP) is expected to be revamped with a larger allocation in the 2017-18 Union Budget

2. The scheme has a target of providing clean, piped drinking water to all households across the country.

3. Around 15 per cent of households in the country have access to clean piped drinking water, while 77 per cent of 1.8 million habitations receive 40 litres of water per person per day through various sources.

4. The 2016-17 Budget had allocated Rs 5,000 crore to the scheme, with an equal grant by the states. However, the ministry of drinking water and sanitation has demanded a substantial increase in its outlay in the coming budget.

5, "We are talking to states to ensure that the revamped NRDWP project gets a big support," Iyer said.