Chhattisgarh’s Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Ajay Chandrakar on Wednesday said that the Government has pledged to make Chhattisgarh complete open defecation free (ODF) State by the year 2018 as
against the Centre’s national target of making India ‘ODF country’ by 2019.
The Minister was addressing a review meeting of state ministers and Secretaries in-charge of Sanitation and Rural Drinking water at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.
Chhattisgarh Public Health Engineering Minister Ramsewak Paikra also attended the meeting and presented his views.
Union Rural Development Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh presided over the meeting. Chhattisgarh Panchayat and Rural Development department Additional Chief Secretary M K Raut was also present.
Apprising the Union Minister about Chhattisgarh’s work progress under ‘Swachch Bharat Mission’, Chandrakar said that a target of making 4811 villages of the State open defecation free has been set under ‘Swachch Bharat Mission’ and MNREGA out of which 1034 villages have already become open defecation free.
He said that more than 23,000 individual toilets have also been constructed.
The Minister urged the Centre to provide assistance of Rs 420 crore as more than 7 lakh toilets have still to be constructed in the State.
He also demanded assistance from the Centre for turning 10.32 lakh non-operational toilets in the State into operational toilets.
PHED Minister Ramsevak Paikra informed in the meeting that drinking water has been made available in remote areas of Chhattisgarh through solar energy based power pumps.
He urged the Centre to grant special status to Chhattisgarh for schemes related to drinking water and provide enough funds for sanctioned 466 schemes under NRDWP along with National Rural Drinking Water Programme.