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Journalism of Courage
Under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Maharashtra has built 60 lakh toilets within three years. The next phase focused on changing the mindset of people to ensure that these toilets were used, for which adequate infrastructure complete with access to water was provided in the shortest possible time, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Monday.
Fadnavis was addressing the plenary session on ‘Swachh Bharat and Sustainable Development Goals’ at the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention in New Delhi along with Union minister Uma Bharati and UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta H Fore. Fadnavis said, “In three years, Maharashtra constructed 60 lakh toilets. Whereas, the total number of toilets built between 1947 and 2014 were only 50 lakh. Therefore, it shows the mammoth work which was undertaken.”
The total expenditure incurred on the project by the Centre as well as the state government was to the tune of Rs 4,500 crore. Admitting that it appeared an audacious task in the beginning, he said that the state government began the drive by roping in all elected members and organisations to create awareness programmes and elicit the support of people in both rural and urban areas. “Almost three decades ago in my hometown Nagpur, 12 toilets were built. But people used to open spaces for defecation. They dismantled the toilet seats and converted it into rooms. It became a storehouse,” he added.
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