Centre launches sanitation survey for 2018, tweaks parameters

NEW DELHI: Faking or misrepresentation progress of sanitation infrastructure and their usage such as construction of toilets, processing of waste will cost dear to municipal bodies. They will not only lose points, but will also get

negative

mark during the ranking of cities on sanitation parameters.

This mechanism has been introduced in the assessment methodology for Swachh Survey ranking of cities for 2018. The

housing

and urban affairs minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched the parameters on Monday, which will be used for assessment of 4,041 cities and towns, which have at least 40 crore people.

Sources said the new provision for negative mark has been introduced to ensuring rigorous scrutiny of physical progress in improvement in sanitation infrastructure and service levels.

"Under this, if claims of city governments are found to be incorrect by independent assessors, they will get 33% negative marks besides zero marks in respect of such parameters. It will be double for cities. The assessment will be based on sample survey," said a ministry official.

The survey methodology seeks to capture the efforts under and outcomes of the urban component of Swachh Bharat Mission as the cities move on from building toilets towards solid waste management with emphasis on decentralized solutions, ensuring sustainability of improved sanitation infrastructure and services and enforcement.

Housing and urban affairs secretary

Durga Shanker Mishra

said keeping in view the need for visible improvements in sanitation in urban areas to be felt on ground, total weightage for citizen feedback and Independent observation of sanitation have been increased by 10% over that of 2017 survey.

To encourage cities take up innovative sanitation practices and solutions, a new element of ‘Innovation’ has been introduced this year with a weightage of 5%.

The survey will also assess availability of water connections to toilets, recovery of operation and maintenance costs of community and public toilets and other infrastructure through user charges, advertisement revenue, municipal taxes etc, liquid waste management though treatment and septage disposal, segregation of municipal waste at source, decentralized compost making by bulk generators etc.