With over 77 per cent population of Bihar defecating in the open, Union Minister of State (MoS) for Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Drinking Water and Sanitation Upendra Kushwaha today said Bihar was the worst state in use of toilets.
"National average for open defecation is at 60 per cent, but in Bihar it is 77 per cent. Hardly 33 per cent homes in the state have toilets. I am telling you on the basis of data provided by the officials but the ground reality could be even worse. Of all the states, Bihar is the worst state in use of toilets," Kushwaha said while talking to media persons.
Kushwaha said it is "a matter of shame" that rural women have to relieve themselves in the open on the road sides. It involved issues related to honour, security and health of women.
"I have been touring different states and the toilets built under the 'Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan' scheme are in worst condition in Bihar. I visited several districts here and personally inspected public toilets built under the scheme. Only a few of them are in working condition as exceptions here and there," Kushwaha said.
The Minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to providing toilets to the last of the poor during his Independence Day speech, and the Centre has started working on achieving it.
"We have fixed an aim of providing toilet facilities to all poor by 2019. We are working on it," added the Minister.
He also said if the state government prepares any proposal for maintenance and cleaning of existing toilets, the Centre will surely help in it.
Criticising the Bihar government for being unable to lift funds allocated by the Centre for toilet schemes, Kushwaha alleged that it falsely claimed that the central government was not giving money for developmental activities.
Taking potshots at the state government for lagging behind in providing houses to the poor under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), the central minister said Bihar has lost its right to talk about it.
"The Bihar government has not been able to get any money for toilet schemes during the current financial year 2014-15. It had an opening balance of Rs 246 crore as on April 1, 2014, and according to Government of India rules money is provided to states only if the opening balance is less that Rs 50 crore," asserted Kushwaha.
The Minister said Rs 350 crore was allocated to Bihar for providing piped drinking water to the people, but it could not avail it. He added that the Centre was aiming at providing safe, pure drinking water to everybody in the country by 2019.
Taking potshots at the state government here for lagging behind in providing houses to the poor under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), the minister said Bihar has lost its right to talk about it.
Accusing Bihar government of being a government which focuses on earning interest, Kushwaha said that all the money it gets is kept in banks for the sake of earning interest.
"There was an aim to construct 59.42 lakh houses in Bihar over the last 10 years, but only 41.81 lakh could be built. The state was lagging behind by 17.61 lakh IAY houses. There was a target to build 6.05 lakh houses during the financial year 2013-14, but only 2.75 lakh could be constructed. You can understand how central funds were being used here," he said.
Reacting to Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi's recent claims that the Centre has cut down the annual target of 6 lakh IAY houses to 2.8 lakh, Kushwaha said it was a decision taken by the previous government at the Centre.
"Our government has no role in reducing the target. It was done by the previous government at the Centre. Moreover, it was done on the basis of Census figures, which have changed between 2001 and 2011. The allocation of target and money is done on the basis of a single formula for all states," added the Rural Development minister.
Kushwaha rounded off his interaction with the media with an appeal to the state government saying "politics should not be brought into welfare schemes meant for the poor, and the Bihar government should show sincerity towards implementing the central schemes".