Swachh Bharat gets Rs 9k crore

The Government proposed to spend Rs 9,000 crore in 2016-17 for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley noted that Swachh Bharat Mission was India’s biggest drive to improve sanitation and cleanliness, especially in rural India. “This subject was very close to the heart of the Father of the Nation. For the first time since independence, the Parliament held a comprehensive debate on sanitation. This has become a topic of discussion in almost every home,” said Jaitley.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan on October 2, 2014. The mission is aimed at achieving universal sanitation coverage and eliminating open defecation by October 2, 2019. It is also aimed at promoting better hygiene amongst the population and improving cleanliness by initiating Solid and Liquid Waste Management projects in villages, towns and cities.

“In order to continue this momentum, priority allocation from Centrally Sponsored Schemes will be made to reward villages that have become free from open defecation,” said Jaitley.

The Economic Survey pointed out that sanitation coverage in rural areas expanded after Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Jaitley on Monday earmarked Rs 14,010 crore for the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation in 2016-17, raising it from Rs 12,091 crore allocated in the previous financial year.