Modi calls for legal frameworking of 'Swachh Bharat' mission

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday stressed the need for creating a legal architecture to institutionalize his "Swachh Bharat" national sanitation campaign to be launched on Oct 2, with the aim of creating a clean India by 2019.

He was chairing a high-level meeting to review preparations for the launch of Mission Swachh Bharat, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement.

The clean India campaign should become the agenda of the entire country, Modi said at the meeting.

"Towns along river bank of the Ganga and its tributaries will be accorded top priority in Mission Swachh Bharat," the PMO said.

Scientist Raghunath Anant Mashelkar, former director general of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, has been named the chair of an expert panel to recommend best technologies for the campaign

The 19-member expert committee has been asked to examine best technologies on sanitation and water so that they can be scaled up on a sustainable basis in various states -- with affordability, sustainability, scalability and quality as the main criteria.

The terms of reference include achieving Prime Minister Modi's "Swachh Bharat" goals by 2019, with an emphasis on areas like potable water and sanitation, while also examining the environmental impact of each technology compared with its uses, officials said.

Ahead of naming the committee, Modi had invited ideas from people at large on the design of Mission Swachh Bharat, and announced that the programme will be launched Oct 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi.

"Mission Swachh Bharat aspires to realise Gandhiji's dream of a clean India through 'jan bhagidari' (people's participation). Together, we can make a big difference," Modi had tweeted.

The committee has also been asked to examine the uses of these technologies in different agro-climatic zones in the country, and also suggest what non-technological innovations will be needed in terms of policy and fiscal measures, to put them in effective use.

The committee has also been asked to recommend innovative ways by which all stake-holders -- government, utilities, service providers, non-profits and other institutions -- can be roped in to create a powerful network to deliver the larger objective.

Members include Anand Sekhar of Global Sanitation Fund, H.S. Shankar of IIT-Mumbai, G. Vasdeo of NARDEP, Markand Phadke of Reliance Innovation Leadership Centre, Jayesh Patel of Safai Mahavidyalaya, Satish Wate of NEERI and Vinay Sahasrabhuddhe of Public Policy Research Centre.

The panel also includes senior officials from the ministry of drinking water and sanitation, and representatives from the state governments of Gujarat and Maharashtra. Rajesh Kumar, director for water in the central nodal ministry, is member secretary.