Kerala gets ODF Plus status for proper sanitation, waste disposal

Kerala has been bestowed with the 'Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus' status by the Centre for making all the villages in the state meet the parameters prescribed under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the state government said on Sunday.

The southern state gained the coveted status as all the villages have been equipped with modern facilities for sanitation and waste disposal as per the parameters set by the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti, a release issued by the Kerala Solid Waste Management Project (KSWMP) said.

Kerala is targeting to achieve 100 per cent ODF Model status by December 2023 and is expected to become the first state in the country to achieve that goal, it said.

According to the KSWMP release, the criteria for declaring a village as ODF Plus includes its sustained ODF status along with implementing either solid or liquid waste management systems.

"The focussed efforts by all villages and grama panchayats in meeting the yardsticks in this regard helped Kerala attain the status, which reflects on the policy initiatives and their meticulous implementation by the government," the release said.

The Grama panchayats implemented projects for source level management of biodegradable waste, collection of biodegradable waste by Haritha Karma Sena, construction of community and household toilets, installation of public disposal facilities for biodegradable waste, liquid waste disposal facilities and various informative campaigns, it said.

Presently, out of the 1,509 villages in the state, 491 have got ODF Plus status in 'Aspiring' category, 48 in 'Rising' and 970 in 'Model' category, it said.

"Percentage wise, Kerala has the highest number of model villages in the country," the release said.

In order to achieve 100 per cent ODF Model status by the end of the year, activities like creating well-maintained toilets in schools, anganwadis, grama panchayat headquarters and public washrooms have been taken up in addition to keeping all the villages Open Defecation Free, it said.

Besides that, water stagnation and garbage pile up in public spaces is being avoided, community compost facilities are being created, collection and management facilities for non-biodegradable waste are being identified, it added.

Apart from Kerala, the southern states of Karnataka and Telangana also got ODF Plus status, the release said.