Has Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Been A Success?

Swachh Bharat Abhiyan was a movement launched by the Indian government in 2014. The main aim of this movement was to improve the sanitation conditions of India through implementing various methods and programs. The government encouraged the common people to take part in this movement as well as made them more aware about the importance of hygiene and sanitation, and how they can do their part on a more local level.

Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has definitely been a success if we look at the statistics. Let us look at the different domains upon which this movement has worked and consequently, improved them.

The major problem in rural India was open defecation. Most people in rural India did not have toilets in their homes and used to defecate in the open. Apart from this being a very primitive activity, open defecation led to an increase in diseases and infections that could have easily been prevented. People used to die because of the diseases that were spread through open defecation. This had to change and thus, the Indian government included it as an agenda in their Swachh Bharat movement. By collaborating with different NGOs and organizations, the government launched an awareness program which aimed to change people’s opinion about defecating in the open as well as having toilets in their home.

In many households, it was considered dirty to have a washroom in home. Many awareness programs worked to change this mentality of people. They informed the public about the consequences of defecating in the open. Moreover, they also informed people that activities like defecation in the open gives India a bad name in the international sphere. Eventually, people came around and there was a surge of toilets being built in rural households.

On the other hand, in urban India, there was a lack of public toilets and thus, people used to urinate in the open. This was a major issue even in the metro cities where the majority of the public was educated. Thus, the government took up the initiative of building as many public toilets as possible under the Swachh Bharat Urban. By 2020, the government had created almost 10 crore public toilets. The awareness programs which accompanied the construction of toilets began changing the mind of the public on urinating in the open. People were now informed that they could catch a number of infections by urinating in the open. Moreover, the conditions of existing public toilets also improved. They became cleaner and thus, people did not hesitate to use them.

The government achieved this by involving the common man in their movement as well as taking the help of various private organizations and NGOs like India Sanitation Coalition. By involving various organizations, the government was able to have a more profound impact on the sanitation conditions of the nation. The movement was able to reach every household. Moreover, the government also roped in famous celebrities and thus, the whole movement gained even more popularity. All in all, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has been a big success in India.