The seven per cent achievement in construction of toilets in urban areas of Uttarakhand under Swachh Bharat Mission is being attributed to varied factors by the Government and its critics. While the Chief Minister’s media in charge blames cuts in central budgetary allocations and hindrance posed by procedural factors not practically applicable in Uttarakhand as major factors for this, the Dehradun Mayor opines that the low per cent of progress achieved by the state is reflective of the work culture of the State Government machinery.
Talking to The Pioneer, chief minister Harish Rawat’s media advisor Surendra Kumar said that discontinuance of the central financial aid to Utarakhand and other budgetary cuts made by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Central Government are to blame for the seven per cent achievement. “The government of India is not helping the State Government. Already short of resources, the central budgetary cuts have affected the works. Despite this and limited resources, the State Government is executing this and other vital works using its own resources. Apart from the rural and urban areas, there are numerous semi-urban areas which are being left out because they do not meet the procedural standards, considering which the State has been seeking relaxation in such procedural standards in the case of Uttarakhand but the centre has not done so yet. Inspite of these problems, our rate of execution is good with work going on to develop Pithoragarh district as a model with governmental efforts having made the area almost free of open defecation. The Central Government should assist Uttarakhand all the more considering its unique features,” he said.
Dehradun Mayor Vinod Chamoli opined that the state’s position reflects the work culture prevalent in the state government machinery. He said, “The states which are performing well in this sphere are under efficiently functioning state governments but in the case of Uttarakhand, the state government appears to be least concerned. We are working on making 18 of our municipal wards open defecation free. The State Government needs to make an unbiased self-assessment of its working if the desired progress is to be achieved,” added the Mayor.