We are initiating the third theme today on Sustainability. In SBM's guidelines, sustainability forms the critical third pillar of the campaign going beyond planning and implementation. I look forward to an interesting debate.

The Swachh Bharat Mission, launched on 2nd. October 2016, is indeed an ambitious effort to bridge the sanitation deficit that India faces. What is new and gives hope this time as against many earlier sanitation efforts over the past 30 years, is that there is significant political drive from the highest level to this effort, and we have placed possibly the most significant national icon, Mahatma Gandhi, at the centre of the aspiration and effort.

The Government is trying to keep the focus on toilet use and behaviour change, which is not easy in a programme which has a fixed target date, which invariably leads to a race to report numbers. The effort has to be to divert this energy to an effort to create ODF communities, like ODF GPs. As of 12th August, 33,231 GPs out of the total of 251,286 have declared themselves ODF. The District wide approach, also has resulted in 17ODF districts so far, with quite a few more expected in the last 5 months of the year. This is impressive, and the next issue is to ensure that they sustain such status. For this, systems have to be put in place, that includes Social and Behavioural Change Communication interventions, and sustained engagements with these GPs through ODF+ interventions like SLWM support that the Government funds. The Government cannot abandon GPs, Districts and States that achieve ODF. Its not a one time milestone but a sustained process that has to be institutionalised.

How can we ensure that the focus from constructing toilets is shifted towards using and maintaining toilets as well as the safe treatment of human faeces – taking into consideration the whole sanitation chain?