Despite push, only 24 per cent UP villages achieve ODF status

New Delhi: Despite an aggressive push being given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his pet project —  Swachch Bharat Mission (SBM Gramin) — which envisages an open defecation free (ODF) India by October 2, 2019 (the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi) — in the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, only a dismal 24 per cent of villages have managed to achieve the coveted status.

The politically crucial state, which is also among the most densely populated states of the country with a huge mass of rural poor, ranks among the bottom five states which have the poorest percentage of villages that have been declared as ODF.

The other poor performers are Bihar (with only 12 per cent of villages decared as open defecation free), Odisha (20 per cent), Jammu & Kashmir (29 per cent) and Telangana (41 per cent).

Concerned over the poor performance of these states, highly placed sources said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had even held a meeting with district collectors of the four laggard states namely Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Jammu & Kashmir in March 2018.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister had urged these states to form teams at district levels to monitor progress of SBM Gramin. Sources further said that Mr Modi even asked the officials of these four states to inspire their team members towards meeting the targets before the 150th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. According to official figures made available by the ministry of drinking water and sanitation, not only these states have failed to achieve the target of making all villages under them ODF, they have also recorded huge unspent balances allotted to them by the Centre for SBM Gramin.

During the course of the current fiscal (2018-19, till May 24)), Uttar Pradesh has an unspent balance of '2,836 crore, Bihar has an unspent balance to the tune of '2,764 crore, Odisha has '436 crore lying unused, Madhya Pradesh ('866 crore), Assam ('606 crore) and Andhra Pradesh ('420 crore).

The failings of these states are in stark contrast of 17 states, which have managed to make all the villages under them ODF, thus achieving a 100 per cent record. Chief among them are  Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Punjab and Haryana. Among smaller states which have less number of villages falling under their jurisdiction, BJP-ruled Goa has failed to convert even a single village as ODF. This is all the more glaring as another small state Sikkim has managed to convert all its village as ODF. While Goa has a total of 375 villages, Sikkim has 441 villages under it. Even as Mizoram has managed to achieve 100 per cent record as all its 696 villages have been declared as ODF.

Official sources said that efforts are being at war footing in the laggard states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Jammu & Kashmir to make villages under them 100 per cent ODF. Extra budgetary resources are to be provided to these states to improve the sitaution, sources informed further.