The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in its report "State of Urban Water and Sanitation in India" has pointed out that along with construction of toilets, the Government needs to revise the water supply to urban and rural areas to make the toilets usable.
The report highlighted the plight of the people involved in de-sludging suggesting that the Government should impart required skills to such people and combine training with immediate placement. It also pointed that providing water supply and faecal sludge management for sustainable sanitation will be necessary to make Swachh Bharat Mission a success.
The report also suggests maintaining more detailed data records to help city managers create cleaner cities. Specifically it says, information about waste collection, the cost of city service, and how waste is treated in each city, will help managers better understand the needs of these cities, vis-a-vis their goals under the Government's key social sector scheme.
The report examines three years (2014-2017) of policies and programs to improve access to clean water and sanitary facilities. It presents policy makers with a snapshot of efforts made since the beginning of the Swachh Bharat Mission. The report highlights best practices from the past three years and gives recommendations to help policy makers achieve Swachh Bharat Mission goals faster. The projects ought to create lasting education programs designed by experts for students and city officials that would help change policies and community behaviours. The report is the part of collaborating programme undertaken by TERI, Coca-Cola India and USAID.The report can be read at: http://www.teriuniversity.ac.in/.
The report has emphasised that the Government needs to also focus on improving the regulatory mechanism by devolving powers to urban local bodies and introduce stringent regulatory measures in scientific management of solid waste and septage for strict enforcement of the 'polluter-pays' principle. Apart from the need for holistic approach encompassing faecal sludge management, water supply needs to be integrated with the Swachh Bharat Mission.
The Surat Municipal Corporation's energy generation initiatives and sale of recycled water have been flagged in the report as exemplary instances of self-financing by urban local bodies; it suggests devolution of powers to urban municipalities.
Taking a page out of the success story of Bangladesh in eliminating outside defecation by strengthening the communities at the grass root level, the report has recommended that the Government educate, motivate and mobilise households and communities towards enhanced engagement in planning and implementing sanitation services. Emphasising on the contribution of non-Governmental organisations, the report has urged the Government to enhance the capacities of the NGOs and other partners to engage themselves effectively in the entire water, sanitation and hygiene sector.
The report has recommended that by bringing in the improvements in the capacities of the key institutions involved in smooth functioning of the urban water and sanitation sector, it is essential to use the funds set aside for capacity building by the mission in urban areas.