80% villages have achieved 'open defecation-free plus model' status: C R Patil

New Delhi: About 80 per cent of the country's villages have achieved the 'ODF plus model' status, Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil announced on Tuesday.

In a post on X, Patil said the "milestone" reflects the success of the Swachh Bharat Mission and the transformative power of grassroots governance in building clean villages.

"Under the visionary leadership of Hon'ble Prime Minister @narendramodi Sir, India has achieved a historic milestone, 80% of our villages are now ODF Plus Model villages," he said.

"This is not just a statistic; it reflects the strength of janbhagidari, the success of Swachh Bharat Mission and the transformative power of grassroots governance in building clean, healthy, and sustainable villages," he added.

The minister called on the people to continue on the path of "Swachhata (cleanliness) to Sampannata (prosperity)." The Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen), also celebrating the achievement on social media, said the ODF plus model villages go beyond eliminating open defecation.

These villages are also managing solid and liquid waste effectively and displaying visible cleanliness along with Swachhata-themed messaging, it said on X.

An ODF plus model village is one that sustains its open defecation-free (ODF) status while ensuring effective waste management systems are in place, marking a deeper and more sustainable level of sanitation progress.

This milestone is a part of Phase II of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen), which was launched in 2020 to focus on sustaining ODF status and improving sanitation and waste management in rural India.