Indian cities will now be garbage free, have safe water

One of the Government of India’s most ambitious projects – the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), was recently revived by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, before we delve into how effective SBM-U 2.0 will turn out to be, we must understand what its objectives are.
SBM-U 1.0 targeted the achievement of Open Defecation Free (ODF) status for all urban local bodies (ULBs) in India, building of toilets and making them accessible to all sections of society, and ensuring scientific waste management. In the past seven years, SBM-U 1.0 has managed to make over 4000 ULBs in India ODF, over 950 cities ODF++, and has also lead to over 70 per cent of India’s waste being treated scientifically. Additionally, over 62.37 lakh individual toilets and over six lakh community and public toilets were also constructed under the Mission, both surpassing their initial mission targets. Lastly, as a direct result of the Mission’s guidelines, all faecal sludge from the toilets thus constructed is also treated responsibly, ensuring that it is not dumped into nearby rivers or open landfills. Thus, it is safe to say that SBM-U 1.0 was a success. However, India’s journey to becoming a clean and 100 per cent waste treating country is still far from over.
With the launch of SBM-U 2.0, the Government of India now aims to achieve ODF+ status for all ULBs in India, and ODF++ status for ULBs with less than one lakh population, along with grey and black water management throughout the country. The Mission will also focus on source segregation and scientific processing of all types of waste, adherence to the concept of 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), and remediation of legacy dump sites across Indian cities. These too are gigantic tasks set forth under the Mission. However, with a budget outlay of around `1.41 lakh crore, the targets have come in sight.
One of the most prominent issues that the government will face while implementing this Mission will be a lack of public awareness on the importance of targets set under the Mission. Carrying on the legacy of the first edition of the Mission will be a good move for the government, ensuring that people understand why it is important for them to use toilets, segregate their waste and hand it over to the respective ULB officials accordingly. The next issue will arise in cities achieving the ODF+ and ODF++ certification. Although a number of cities have already declared themselves as ODF+ and ODF++, the journey for the rest of them will be long. One of main reasons for this is the absence of waste transportation and treatment facilities. Although large metropolises like Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai have worked hard on increasing the number of sanitation workers employed to keep toilets built under SBM clean, simply increasing the number of sanitation workers will not be enough. The government will have to adopt modern technologies like automatic sensors and on-site waste remediation. This will help in reducing the cost and effort required to transport and treat faecal sludge from community and public toilets, thereby making it easier to keep them clean as the fund hence left unused can be directed to keep them cleaner.
The government’s ambitions behind SBM-U 2.0 are humungous and in line with Agenda 2030. However, only a clear, planned, and well-funded mission, executed with a bird’s eye view will be able to set things straight in India’s sanitation journey and help it achieve the Sustainable
Development Goals.