After stating that the allocation of Rs.10,000 for building a toilet for an individual rural Indian household was impractical, the Minister for Rural Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation, Nitin Gadkari, announced on Tuesday that he had prepared a cabinet note for the budget to be increased if complete sanitation coverage was to be achieved by 2019.

“I have suggested that the amount allocated for individual household toilets to be increased from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 while Rs. 54,000 should be given instead of Rs. 35,000 for school toilets. For anganwadi toilets, it has been proposed to increase the amount to Rs. 20,000 from Rs.8,000 and that for community toilets from Rs. 2,00,000 to Rs. 6,00,000,” said Gadkari, adding that a few proposals had been received from financial institutions like the World Bank for the project.

He also hoped that village toilets could be built using on a PPP-basis and at least half an acre of land could be set aside in the villages for the production of biogas and natural fertilisers. “Using technology, we can convert work to wealth and such initiatives can generate employment in the villages. To turn knowledge into wealth at the village level is our biggest challenge,” he said at an event here, and emphasised the importance of low-cost technology in building durable toilets that would last 30-40 years.

Gadkari also stated that the sanitation program would be delinked from the MGNREGA scheme as was done by the previous UPA government under the ‘Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan’ program as it slowed down the process of implementing projects. The Minister had earlier stated that the fact that 60% of the Indian population still defecated in the open was lamentable.

“By the 2nd October, 2019, there shouldn’t be one village or family which doesn’t a toilet, the Prime Minister had said. What work hasn’t been done in 67 years, we’re trying to do that in 4 or 5 years and it’s a huge priority for the government. Everyone has a part to play – individuals, corporates, cooperatives, NGOs and experts,” said the Minister.

The ambition underlining Swachh Bharat — a toilet for all in the countryside by 2019 — was outlined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech. Based on a survey, 8.84 crore households would need to have toilets installed over the next five year. The central government project estimated to cost Rs. 177 lakh per year