Representational picture. Credit: vidushisandhir/wordpress.com

The much-hyped flagship programme Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) launched by PM Modi seems to have failed in his home state, since a recent report claims absence of toilets in close to a quarter of houses in Gujarat.A report called Swachhata Status Report ­ 2016 by ministry of drinking water and sanitation tabled before the Lok Sabha, showed that as of July 18, 2016, nearly 17 lakh households in rural Gujarat did not have toilets ­ which is almost 24.17% of houses in Gujarat according to Times of India Interestingly, Gujarat was one of the first states in India to declare its urban areas (180 cities and towns) open-defecation free last month. According to the news reports, on October 2 – on the 2nd anniversary of the Swachh Bharat Mission, union urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu complimented Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani saying, “Gujarat is the torchbearer and has set an example for others in swachhta (cleanliness).“The report published by National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) also shows that 37% of villages from the state lack sewerage systems.According to the TOI report, Centre's Census 2011 report says that out of the 1.22 crore households, including urban and rural areas in Gujarat, 47.25% do not have toilets.The state, however, has claimed to have constructed 1.55 lakh toilets in 2013-14 and, 3.35 lakh in 2014-15, 9.22 lakh in 2015-16, and 2.08 lakh till July this year in 2016-17. Though no one questions why the construction of toilets dropped so drastically as against last year, on the face of it, both the Centre and the state government continue to praise each other about their achievements in taking the SBM forward, reported TOI.Apart from lack of toilets, proper drainage or sewage systems are absent from 6,714 of the nearly 18,000 villages in Gujarat, claims the government report on swachhta, as the SBM promotes construction of soak-pit toilets in rural areas.A social rights activist, Bharatsinh Jhala, who has been fighting for rights of homeless people, said that it is the government's duty to identify the people in need.“Rather than making false propaganda in the name of Mahatma Gandhi, the Centre and the state government should sincerely provide better sanitation to the people of this country,” Jhala told TOI.