In an attempt to achieve open defecation free status for Uttar Pradesh by October 2 next year, the state government has decided to introduce cash incentives for village heads, officials and workers playing a key role in the campaign.
The initiative follows a number of other steps, including ‘Gandhigiri’ (where roses and garlands were presented to people), construction of toilets in houses and even special screening of Akshay Kumar-starrer romantic comedy movie ‘Toilet – Ek Prem Katha’.
Through a missive dated September 11, additional chief secretary, UP, Chanchal Kumar Tiwari has conveyed the government’s decision to all divisional commissioners, DMs as well as state mission director of Swachh Bharat Mission (rural).
The missive spells out the details of cash incentives as well as the criterion for selection of awardees.
The decision has been taken by a panel of the UP State Sanitation Mission headed by the chief secretary. The scheme will be implemented with effect from the start of current financial year.
The central government had introduced cash incentive, Nirmal Gram Puraskar, for villages in 2005 but scrapped it in December 2015.
{{/usCountry}}The central government had introduced cash incentive, Nirmal Gram Puraskar, for villages in 2005 but scrapped it in December 2015.
{{/usCountry}}An important component of the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, the earlier version of the Clean India campaign, had cash rewards ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 10 lakh per panchayat if all households had toilets and the village was free of open defecation.
However, the programme was scrapped after it faced criticism for its inefficacy.
According to the India Human Development Report published in 2011, there are many gram panchayats in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal that practised open defecation even though they had been rewarded with the Nirmal Gram Puraskar.
After the launch of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014, the cash award scheme was reviewed and taking its ineffectiveness into account, it was decided that it should be scrapped. The states, however, were given the option to introduce any award that they desired.
WHAT WILL THEY GET AT DIFFERENT LEVELS
Gram panchayat level
• Gram pradhan of first gram panchayat to become fully ODF in every block of a district: Up to Rs 5,000
• Gram pradhan of other villages (number equivalent to count of blocks in a district) which first attain ODF status: Up to Rs 5,000
District level
• First 10 districts to have at least 25 ODF gram panchayats through community incentive: Rs 50,000 to DMs, Rs 30,000 to CDOs, Rs 20,000 to district panchayat officer and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants with each award not more than Rs 10,000.
• First 20 districts to have at least two ODF development blocks: Rs 50,000 to DMs, Rs 30,000 to CDOs, Rs 20,000 to district panchayat officer and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants with each award not more than Rs 10,000.
• All districts which attain ODF status in financial year 2017-18: Rs 50,000 to DMs, Rs 30,000 to CDOs, Rs 20,000 to district panchayat officer and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants with each award not more than Rs 10,000.
Division level
• Top five divisions to attain ODF status in at least two districts with 25-25 gram panchayats and 75 gram panchayats at division level: Rs 1 lakh to divisional commissioner, Rs 30,000 to divisional deputy director and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants of the division/district with each award not more than Rs 10,000.
• Division with at least two districts each having minimum of 3-3 ODF development blocks and total seven such blocks in its districts: Rs 1 lakh to divisional commissioner, Rs 30,000 to divisional deputy director and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants of the division/district with each award not more than Rs 10,000.
• Attaining ODF status in at least two districts of a division: Rs 1 lakh to divisional commissioner, Rs 30,000 to divisional deputy director and up to Rs 75,000 to individuals, officials, workers or consultants of the division/district with each award not more than Rs 10,000.