State declared open-defecation free (ODF)

 Context :- 

On Thursday declared the state open-defecation free (ODF), underscoring that over 33 lakh toilets had been completed. It is though no secret that more toilets do not necessarily curb an age-old practice in this tribal hinterland. The state also hired more than 1 lakh trained masons (male and female) to construct twin pit toilets .The government organised a series of campaigns like Swachhta Sahyog Abhiyan and Swachhta hi Seva, and developed a pool of trained masons, jal sahiyas (women who supervise hand pump repair and cleanliness of water bodies) and swachhagrahis (swachhta motivators) in ODF districts. Building of toilets and generating awareness went hand in hand.

And, to ensure complete behavioural change, the authorities are organising swachhta sabhas (sanitation meetings) on the second of every month across all villages in the state. Officials and residents together discuss the action plan to make a village ODF. On the 19th of every month, sanitation classes are held across villages to apprise people of health hazards due to open defecation.

Open Defection Free :- 

Open defecation refers to the practice whereby people go out in fields, bushes, forests, open bodies of water, or other open spaces rather than using the toilet to defecate. The practice is rampant in India and the country is home to the world’s largest population of people who defecate in the open and excrete close to 65,000 tonnes of faeces into the environment each day.

Open defecation poses a serious threat to the health of children in India. The practice is the main reason India reports the highest number of diarrhoeal deaths among children under-five in the world.

Every year, diarrhoea kills 1,17,285 children under five in India. Children weakened by frequent diarrhoea episodes are more vulnerable to malnutrition, stunting, and opportunistic infections such as pneumonia.

Diarrhoea and worm infection are two major health conditions that affect school-age children impacting their learning abilities. Open defecation also puts at risk the dignity of women in India. Women feel constrained to relieve themselves only under the cover of dark for reasons of privacy to protect their dignity.

Open defecation exposes women to the danger of physical attacks and encounters such as snake bites. Poor sanitation also cripples national development: workers produce less, live shorter lives, save and invest less, and are less able to send their children to school.

ODF is the termination of faecal-oral transmission, defined by

• no visible faeces found in the environment/village; and
• every household as well as public/community institutions using

[a] safe technology option for disposal of faeces. Safe technology option means no contamination of surface soil, ground water or surface water; excreta inaccessible to flies or animals; no handling of fresh excreta; and freedom from odour and unsightly condition.

By: Shashank Shekhar