The country has recently accomplished a noteworthy achievement under the Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin (SBM-G), where 50% of the entire villages in India have attained ODF Plus status in the second phase of the Mission. An ODF Plus village maintains its Open Defecation Free (ODF) status while also implementing either solid or liquid waste management systems. Presently, over 2.96 lakh villages have declared themselves ODF Plus, demonstrating significant progress towards attaining the SBM-G phase II objectives by 2024-25.
Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh are the top performing states in terms of the percentage of ODF Plus villages, with 100%, 99.5%, 97.8%, and 95.2%, respectively. In addition, Goa and Sikkim are the top performers among small states, with 95.3% and 69.2%, respectively. Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadra Nagar Havelli & Daman Diu, and Lakshadweep are among the UTs with 100% ODF Plus Model villages. These States & UTs have shown remarkable progress in achieving the ODF Plus status, and their efforts have been instrumental in reaching this milestone.
Of the 2,96,928 ODF Plus villages, 2,08,613 villages are ODF Plus Aspiring villages with arrangements for Solid Waste Management or Liquid Waste Management, 32,030 villages are ODF Plus Rising villages with arrangements for both Solid Waste Management and Liquid Waste Management, and 56,285 villages are ODF Plus Model villages. An ODF Plus Model village maintains its ODF status and has arrangements for both Solid Waste Management and Liquid Waste Management; observes visual cleanliness, i.e., minimal litter, minimal stagnant wastewater, no plastic waste dump in public places; and displays ODF Plus Information, Education & Communication (IEC) messages. Currently, 1,65,048 villages have arrangements for solid waste management, 2,39,063 villages have arrangements for liquid waste management, 4,57,060 villages have minimal stagnant water while 4,67,384 villages have minimal litter.
The Central Government has allocated a total of INR 83,938 crore to Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen between 2014-15 and 2021-22. The allocation for the year 2023-24 is Rs. 52,137 Crore. In addition to the SBM(G) funds, there is a clear allocation of 15th FC funds for sanitation. These funds have been utilized to build sanitation assets, promote behavior change, and implement solid and liquid waste management systems.
This year marks the 9th year of the Swachh Bharat Mission. Achieving 50% ODF Plus villages is a significant milestone for India as it goes beyond constructing and utilizing toilets towards complete cleanliness, i.e., from ODF to ODF Plus. The major components of the Phase-II of SBM (G) are Sustaining Open Defecation Free Status (ODF-S), Solid (Bio-degradable) Waste Management, Plastic Waste Management (PWM), Liquid Waste Management (LWM), Faecal Sludge Management (FSM), GOBARdhan, Information Education and Communication/Behavior Change Communication (IEC/BCC), and Capacity Building. The SBM-G program has been instrumental in improving the health and sanitation conditions of India’s rural areas.
