Chandigarh, July 9:
Punjab has bagged the top position in urban sanitation among all the States as 99.38% of its Urban Local Bodies sustaining ODF status and attaining ODF+, ODF++ status against 88.18% ULBs in the country. Out of 163 ULBs of Punjab, 162 ULBs have been able to get ODF+ or ODF++ certifications.
Disclosing this here today, Local Government Minister Mr. Brahm Mohindra said that the process of certification involves third party filed assessment for checking of open defecation, functionality of Individual, Public and Community Toilets and their status of maintenance. All the toilets should be on google map and there should be no open defecation.
Mr. Brahm Mohindra said that if the State of Punjab is compared to the neighboring states of Northern region, as against 99.38% successful ODF+, ++ certified ULBs of the state, the number of percentage Successful ODF+, ++ ULBs is 75.40% (46/61) in Himachal Pradesh, 81.60% (71/87) in Haryana, 88.89% (88/99 in Uttarakhand (73.75%) 59/80 in Jammu & Kashmir and (80%) 4/5 in Delhi.
He divulged that urban Punjab was also declared ODF on 2nd October, 2018, when all the ULBs had achieved third party certified ODF status which became possible with triggering of people those who did not have household toilets to build IHHLs, construction and use of use of Community Toilets and construction and proper maintenance of Public Toilets.
Local Government Minister further said that after all the Municipal bodies in the country had been declared Open Defecation Free, Government of India has now started assessing the states on the higher order certification i.e. ODF + and ODF ++.
He added that in this process, 4374 Urban Local Bodies have been assessed recently by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs for Open Defecation Free/ODF+/ODF++ Certification, through the third party assessment. Across the Country, 88.18 % ULBs have achieved ODF+ & ODF++ status.
