Pledging to take up Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘dream’ project – Swachcha Bharat – in mission mode, Rural Development Minister Nitin Gadkari said the current allocation of ₹10,000 per toilet in rural areas was insufficient and would be hiked soon. A scheme on clean drinking water would also be announced in two months, he added.

Real target The amount to build toilets would be increased to achieve the real target, he said, lamenting that after 67 years of Independence, 60 per cent people in India defecated in the open.

Addressing the National Conference on Sanitation and Drinking Water, Gadkari said massive funds will be mobilised for “sanitation for all by 2019” and urged State Ministers of Drinking Water and Sanitation to come up with practical and area-specific approach to toilets.

Drinking water Calling for quality work so that toilets last up to 30-40 years, Gadkari urged States to opt for low-cost technology, adding that funds would not be a problem.

To address the problem of drinking water, especially in 17,000 villages that have contamination problems, such as the presence of arsenic, excessive fluoride, heavy metals and other pollutants, the Minister said a new scheme would be launched in the next two months.

In his speech on Independence Day, Modi had urged State Ministers to ensure that by August 15, 2015, every school had separate toilets for boys and girls.

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