Manipur state recorded poorest performer of total sanitation campaign
Imphal, August 30 2010: The Communication and Capacity Development Unit (CCDU) Manipur, which has been singled out as the poorest performer among the states of the country in implementing "Total Sanitation Campaign", one of the flagship programmes of the Centre, is being run single handedly by a director.
The CCD Unit set up five years back in 2005 with the sole purpose of implementing the "Total Sanitation Programme", a flagship programme of the Union government.
Manipur was singled out as the poorest performer of the total Sanitation Campaign among the other states of the country with only 9000 individual household latrines (IHHL) completed out of six lakh targeted under the scheme till the end of fiscal year 2009-10, an official source said.
Observing the poor performance, the state was motivated by Plan Approval Committee (PAC) of the Department of Drinking Water Supply of Union Ministry of Rural Development by suggesting exposure visits of its officials to West Bengal and Sikkim where the scheme were successfully implemented.
The state Community and Capacity Development (CCDU) unit, which was set up under the aegis of the Department of Drinking Water Supply, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India, has been in operation since 2005 in the state.
It has been set up for the purpose of implementing the "Total Sanitation programme" in the state.
The importance of this programme cannot be overlooked as it is one of the flagship programme of the Union government.
The staffing pattern of CCDU has been designated by the Government of India.
The Plan Approval Committee in its meeting held on April 23, 2009 at New Delhi accorded approval to the staff pattern proposed by the Annual Implementation Plan (AIP) 2009-10 of CCDU, Manipur and also approved to the filling up of staff on deputation and contract basis, official sources said.
The approved staff pattern includes appointment of a Director with monthly emolument of Rs 35,000, State Coordinator with the same emolument and an Accountant (Cashier) with a monthly emolument of 30,000 on deputation and engagement of three Consultants, two Data Entry Operators, one Peon, and one Security Guard on contract basis.
Despite the fact that the approval was given one year and a half back, at present only the post of Director has been filled on deputation by L Swamikanta Singh, a Senior Engineer level officer from the PHED Department, and he has been single handedly running CCDU since his appointment on December 1, 2008 .
The hitherto unmoved government has started moving with the placing of a proposal for filling up the required staff of the CCDU as per approved pattern,an official source said.
ends
Showing posts with label sanitation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sanitation. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
Inhuman work. Early deaths.
TERESA REHMAN on the plight of migrant Dalits who clean biomedical waste in the Northeast
HE IS one of the privileged few who works with a mask and a pair of gloves. He is posted in the Orthopaedic Operation Theatre at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital (GMCH), a premier referral centre in the Northeast. “I will tell you under what circumstances we work but I will never reveal my name. After all, I have to keep my job. I have been working as a daily-wager for the past 17 years and am yet to be made permanent.”
His father had emigrated to Assam at a very young age from Sardar Seher village in Churu district of Rajasthan and started working in the GMCH since the time of its founding. His father and his brother, both in the same profession, died young due to various ailments. “I am lucky as I handle fresh waste products. Not everyone is as fortunate. We have to handle many grimy biomedical and human wastes, which are sometimes three to four days old, without any safety gear. Therefore, we are prone to infections and our life-span is short,” he adds.
He cites the example of Om Prakash Valmiki, a senior safai karamchari of GMCH who is responsible for handling the dirtiest jobs, including the disposal of dead bodies, body parts and foetuses. Barely able to walk, Valmiki says, “We have to officially wait for three days for the legal guardians to claim any body. If they don’t turn up, we dispose the body. Of course, the stench has taken a toll on my health. I have lost my appetite and can hardly eat nowadays.”
There are allegations that these workers die early since they consume alcohol. SK Pawar, state president of the Rashtriya Safai Mazdoor Congress argues, “Do you think a sane person can do such a dirty job, that too without taking any precautions?” With not even a deep freeze or a proper morgue, the dead bodies are dumped in a room. After a few days, when five to six bodies accumulate, they are disposed. Foetuses and other body parts are piled into plastic drums for a few days and then buried.
Pawar adds, “In most cases, worms eat into these human parts and our safai karamcharis have to handle them with bare hands. Needles prick their hands; they suffer and die of undiagnosed infections. The life of a safai karamchari is very cheap.” In the last five years, there have been 12 deaths in the workers colony in the 35-40 year age group.
Their home, the GMCH colony in Ananda Nagar, wears a deserted look during the day as all the inmates including women and children go and perform “private jobs” — cleaning lavatories and other janitorial jobs at private homes — a source of extra income. One has to step over a dirty drain to climb the stairs leading to their hillside
colony.
As young, unemployed boys stand in the paan shop, a stench emanates from the entire colony inhabited by Dalit migrant workers from Punjab, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and even parts of South India who came and settled in various parts of the Northeast since the pre-independence days. Of late, the inmates of this colony have been living without electricity or water — the supply of both have been cut off due to non-payment of bills by the hospital authorities.
Pawar points out that the safai karamcharis in the Northeast are more backward compared to the rest of the country as they lack social consciousness. Most of the children drop out of schools as teachers do not pay them any attention. He cites the example of the Harijan Sishu Vidyalaya at the GMCH colony which a few years ago switched from Hindi to Assamese medium forcing the children of safai karamcharis to drop out.
The safai karamcharis comprise around 10 lakh people, and nearly six lakh are in government service. Yet they do not even get Permanent Resident Certificates though their names figure in the voters list. “They ask for 30 to 40- year-old land patta which none of us possesses. People feel if we settle down at some place we will spoil the environment. We have no place to go after retirement. We don’t belong anywhere, we cannot even go back to our native lands as we have nothing there,” says Pawar.
Meanwhile, there’s a new trend in GMCH where even these jobs are allotted to the locals, who in turn sub-contract the same. The person appointed to the job enjoys all the benefits but does not do the work. He pays about Rs 500 to a safai karamchari to do the job. And young boys like Babloo Valmiki, a school dropout, cannot even hope to inherit his father’s government job after his retirement or premature death. “I do private jobs, cleaning lavatories,” he says. As Pawar see it: “We live in the present as we have no future.”
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 4, Issue 50, Dated Dec 29, 2007
TERESA REHMAN on the plight of migrant Dalits who clean biomedical waste in the Northeast
HE IS one of the privileged few who works with a mask and a pair of gloves. He is posted in the Orthopaedic Operation Theatre at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital (GMCH), a premier referral centre in the Northeast. “I will tell you under what circumstances we work but I will never reveal my name. After all, I have to keep my job. I have been working as a daily-wager for the past 17 years and am yet to be made permanent.”
His father had emigrated to Assam at a very young age from Sardar Seher village in Churu district of Rajasthan and started working in the GMCH since the time of its founding. His father and his brother, both in the same profession, died young due to various ailments. “I am lucky as I handle fresh waste products. Not everyone is as fortunate. We have to handle many grimy biomedical and human wastes, which are sometimes three to four days old, without any safety gear. Therefore, we are prone to infections and our life-span is short,” he adds.
He cites the example of Om Prakash Valmiki, a senior safai karamchari of GMCH who is responsible for handling the dirtiest jobs, including the disposal of dead bodies, body parts and foetuses. Barely able to walk, Valmiki says, “We have to officially wait for three days for the legal guardians to claim any body. If they don’t turn up, we dispose the body. Of course, the stench has taken a toll on my health. I have lost my appetite and can hardly eat nowadays.”
There are allegations that these workers die early since they consume alcohol. SK Pawar, state president of the Rashtriya Safai Mazdoor Congress argues, “Do you think a sane person can do such a dirty job, that too without taking any precautions?” With not even a deep freeze or a proper morgue, the dead bodies are dumped in a room. After a few days, when five to six bodies accumulate, they are disposed. Foetuses and other body parts are piled into plastic drums for a few days and then buried.
Pawar adds, “In most cases, worms eat into these human parts and our safai karamcharis have to handle them with bare hands. Needles prick their hands; they suffer and die of undiagnosed infections. The life of a safai karamchari is very cheap.” In the last five years, there have been 12 deaths in the workers colony in the 35-40 year age group.
Their home, the GMCH colony in Ananda Nagar, wears a deserted look during the day as all the inmates including women and children go and perform “private jobs” — cleaning lavatories and other janitorial jobs at private homes — a source of extra income. One has to step over a dirty drain to climb the stairs leading to their hillside
colony.
As young, unemployed boys stand in the paan shop, a stench emanates from the entire colony inhabited by Dalit migrant workers from Punjab, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and even parts of South India who came and settled in various parts of the Northeast since the pre-independence days. Of late, the inmates of this colony have been living without electricity or water — the supply of both have been cut off due to non-payment of bills by the hospital authorities.
Pawar points out that the safai karamcharis in the Northeast are more backward compared to the rest of the country as they lack social consciousness. Most of the children drop out of schools as teachers do not pay them any attention. He cites the example of the Harijan Sishu Vidyalaya at the GMCH colony which a few years ago switched from Hindi to Assamese medium forcing the children of safai karamcharis to drop out.
The safai karamcharis comprise around 10 lakh people, and nearly six lakh are in government service. Yet they do not even get Permanent Resident Certificates though their names figure in the voters list. “They ask for 30 to 40- year-old land patta which none of us possesses. People feel if we settle down at some place we will spoil the environment. We have no place to go after retirement. We don’t belong anywhere, we cannot even go back to our native lands as we have nothing there,” says Pawar.
Meanwhile, there’s a new trend in GMCH where even these jobs are allotted to the locals, who in turn sub-contract the same. The person appointed to the job enjoys all the benefits but does not do the work. He pays about Rs 500 to a safai karamchari to do the job. And young boys like Babloo Valmiki, a school dropout, cannot even hope to inherit his father’s government job after his retirement or premature death. “I do private jobs, cleaning lavatories,” he says. As Pawar see it: “We live in the present as we have no future.”
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 4, Issue 50, Dated Dec 29, 2007
Friday, July 9, 2010
Post-rain situation in coastal areas
Poor sanitation system wreaks havoc as low-lying localities inundated
Friday, July 09, 2010
By our correspondent
Karachi
The poor sanitation system in coastal localities has wreaked havoc in the low-lying areas of Keamari and Bin Qasim towns in the aftermath of the recent monsoon showers.
The situation has exposed the claims of local government institutions and the provincial authorities of having cleared chocked sewerage lines. Moreover, streets were flooded by rain water, while residents in many areas complained of receiving contaminated water.
Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) spokesperson on Thursday said they have collected information which reveals that in Keamari and Bin Qasim Towns, low-lying areas are flooded with chocked sewerage lines.
He said that despite complaints against the recently-built waterway flowing near Rehri from mountainous areas, the provincial and city government could not pay heed to improve it further. The storm waterway was carrying rainwater and sewerage into the sea smoothly, but the authorities built it without seeking prior consents of the locals.
As a result, the waterway could not receive rain water flow from nearby coastal villages. During the recent showers, area people broke the drainage wall from different areas to build makeshift outlet for rain water, which caused problem for the people of Rehri, because now they receive water flowing from upper parts.
Meanwhile, water shortage is still affecting the people living in coastal localities. Hundreds of fishing vessels can still be witnessed anchored along the local jetties because of a ban on fishing.
In this situation they can not afford to buy water for domestic use. Protest by residents of different neighbourhoods are reportedly being held on a daily basis, but, till yet, nobody from the authorities has come to listen to their grievances.
ends
Poor sanitation system wreaks havoc as low-lying localities inundated
Friday, July 09, 2010
By our correspondent
Karachi
The poor sanitation system in coastal localities has wreaked havoc in the low-lying areas of Keamari and Bin Qasim towns in the aftermath of the recent monsoon showers.
The situation has exposed the claims of local government institutions and the provincial authorities of having cleared chocked sewerage lines. Moreover, streets were flooded by rain water, while residents in many areas complained of receiving contaminated water.
Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) spokesperson on Thursday said they have collected information which reveals that in Keamari and Bin Qasim Towns, low-lying areas are flooded with chocked sewerage lines.
He said that despite complaints against the recently-built waterway flowing near Rehri from mountainous areas, the provincial and city government could not pay heed to improve it further. The storm waterway was carrying rainwater and sewerage into the sea smoothly, but the authorities built it without seeking prior consents of the locals.
As a result, the waterway could not receive rain water flow from nearby coastal villages. During the recent showers, area people broke the drainage wall from different areas to build makeshift outlet for rain water, which caused problem for the people of Rehri, because now they receive water flowing from upper parts.
Meanwhile, water shortage is still affecting the people living in coastal localities. Hundreds of fishing vessels can still be witnessed anchored along the local jetties because of a ban on fishing.
In this situation they can not afford to buy water for domestic use. Protest by residents of different neighbourhoods are reportedly being held on a daily basis, but, till yet, nobody from the authorities has come to listen to their grievances.
ends
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Staging Change
Government officials in Assam take to plays to raise awareness of the need for sanitation
TERESA REHMAN
A typical village school scene. The class-monitor checks the nails and teeth of his classmates. Just then the teacher walks in and takes stock of things. The teacher reprimands Jadu, a student, for failing to meet the cleanliness standards, and is sent home. A little later, Jadu’s mother storms in and questions the teacher. She says, “My son has not been keeping well for several days. I have had to consult several witch-doctors.”
A social worker who was passing by hears the commotion and stops at the school. And naturally inquisitive, school children ask the social workers various questions on sanitation and he answers them. The social worker asks Jadu’s mother whether she has a toilet at home. Jadu’s mother replies, “We don’t need a toilet. It’s the government’s job to build it for us. If they can provide Rs 1200 subsidy for the toilet costing Rs 1500, why can’t they spare the extra Rs 300? We would rather relieve ourselves in the bamboo grove in the backyard.”
The social worker then explains that the Rs 300 is to be paid by the beneficiary so that she feels a sense of responsibility towards the maintenance of the toilet. He cites the example of public toilets near the bus stand where nobody needs to keep it clean. “No wonder, in such unhygienic conditions, your son keeps falling sick,” he tells Jadu’s mother.
Interestingly, the social worker in the play titled Natak Nohoi (This is not a play) is Robin Chandra Das, an assistant executive engineer with the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), Assam. Das has put together this innovative play, which has no written script and keeps changing from the place in which it is staged.
“We have few other staff members who assist me in staging the play. And in any locality, we often go hunting for local talent a few hours before the play is actually staged. We urge the women and children to participate in the play and once it is over, we hold an interactive session on sanitation. The humour in the play manages to strike the right emotional chord,” says Das.
The play is part of the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) which is a comprehensive programme to ensure sanitation facilities in rural areas with the broader goal to eradicate the practice of open defecation. TSC, as a part of reform principles, was initiated in 1999 when Central Rural Sanitation Programme was restructured making it demand-driven and people-centered.
And the response has been tremendous. H.A. Ahmed, Executive Engineer, PHED, Biswanath Chariali division of Sonitpur district in Assam is enthused at the participation of his officials. Ahmed says, “Sometimes we also involve the local cultural troupes of the area. And people throng to see the plays which manage to carry the message of sanitation to the masses in a more effective manner.” The play uses anecdotes like how even a cat covers its faeces but, we, human beings defecate in the open and spread infections.
The play also incorporates local dialects and even a few Assamese songs with the sanitation theme keeping the audience hooked. Another scene has a mother walking in with a boy who plays truant. The mother complains, “Earlier he used to skip school complaining of stomachache. But now that I have built a toilet at home with my savings, he cannot play around with the same excuse. Today, I heard something move. I thought that our neighbours had come out to defecate in the open but, instead, I saw my son perched on a tree near the bamboo grove.” She then explains to Jadu’s mother on the benefits of having a toilet at home and how it helps keep flies away.
In Assam, the PHED is responsible for ensuring safe hygiene through Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) as well as providing safe drinking water to all the schools located in rural areas. The play was conceptualised by the PHED officials as part of the Sanitation Week being organised in the state this year. The year 2008 has been declared the International Year of Sanitation which aims to address these challenges by raising awareness of the benefits of good hygiene and by helping to break the taboos about speaking out for changes in behaviour.
The School Sanitation and Hygiene Education, widely known as SSHE, is a comprehensive programme to ensure child-friendly water supply, toilet and hand washing facilities in the schools and promote behavioral change by hygiene education. The importance of SSHE was emphasised at the Third South Asia Conference on Sanitation (SACOSAN) held in Delhi from 16-21 November.
At present, the SSHE is implemented under the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) and given special thrust by following the proven route of teacher-children-family-community where child is a change-agent playing an effective role on sustained basis to spread the message of improved sanitary and healthy practices.
The main goal of the GOI is to eradicate the practice of open defecation by 2010. To give fillip to this endeavour, GOI has launched Nirmal Gram Puraskar to recognise the efforts in terms of cash awards for fully covered PRI (Panchayat Raj Instituitions), and those individuals and institutions who have contributed significantly in ensuring total sanitary practices in their area of operation.
In the past two years, Assam has bagged eighteen Nirmal Gram Puraskars. Nareswar Kakati, Secretary, PHED, Assam told TEHELKA, “Our main target is to initiate behavioural change in the people using innovative means, paying special attention to whether they belong to the hilly terrain or the plains” The play is a small step in this direction but the sanitation campaign in Assam still has a long way to go.
ends
Government officials in Assam take to plays to raise awareness of the need for sanitation
TERESA REHMAN
A typical village school scene. The class-monitor checks the nails and teeth of his classmates. Just then the teacher walks in and takes stock of things. The teacher reprimands Jadu, a student, for failing to meet the cleanliness standards, and is sent home. A little later, Jadu’s mother storms in and questions the teacher. She says, “My son has not been keeping well for several days. I have had to consult several witch-doctors.”
A social worker who was passing by hears the commotion and stops at the school. And naturally inquisitive, school children ask the social workers various questions on sanitation and he answers them. The social worker asks Jadu’s mother whether she has a toilet at home. Jadu’s mother replies, “We don’t need a toilet. It’s the government’s job to build it for us. If they can provide Rs 1200 subsidy for the toilet costing Rs 1500, why can’t they spare the extra Rs 300? We would rather relieve ourselves in the bamboo grove in the backyard.”
The social worker then explains that the Rs 300 is to be paid by the beneficiary so that she feels a sense of responsibility towards the maintenance of the toilet. He cites the example of public toilets near the bus stand where nobody needs to keep it clean. “No wonder, in such unhygienic conditions, your son keeps falling sick,” he tells Jadu’s mother.
Interestingly, the social worker in the play titled Natak Nohoi (This is not a play) is Robin Chandra Das, an assistant executive engineer with the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), Assam. Das has put together this innovative play, which has no written script and keeps changing from the place in which it is staged.
“We have few other staff members who assist me in staging the play. And in any locality, we often go hunting for local talent a few hours before the play is actually staged. We urge the women and children to participate in the play and once it is over, we hold an interactive session on sanitation. The humour in the play manages to strike the right emotional chord,” says Das.
The play is part of the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) which is a comprehensive programme to ensure sanitation facilities in rural areas with the broader goal to eradicate the practice of open defecation. TSC, as a part of reform principles, was initiated in 1999 when Central Rural Sanitation Programme was restructured making it demand-driven and people-centered.
And the response has been tremendous. H.A. Ahmed, Executive Engineer, PHED, Biswanath Chariali division of Sonitpur district in Assam is enthused at the participation of his officials. Ahmed says, “Sometimes we also involve the local cultural troupes of the area. And people throng to see the plays which manage to carry the message of sanitation to the masses in a more effective manner.” The play uses anecdotes like how even a cat covers its faeces but, we, human beings defecate in the open and spread infections.
The play also incorporates local dialects and even a few Assamese songs with the sanitation theme keeping the audience hooked. Another scene has a mother walking in with a boy who plays truant. The mother complains, “Earlier he used to skip school complaining of stomachache. But now that I have built a toilet at home with my savings, he cannot play around with the same excuse. Today, I heard something move. I thought that our neighbours had come out to defecate in the open but, instead, I saw my son perched on a tree near the bamboo grove.” She then explains to Jadu’s mother on the benefits of having a toilet at home and how it helps keep flies away.
In Assam, the PHED is responsible for ensuring safe hygiene through Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) as well as providing safe drinking water to all the schools located in rural areas. The play was conceptualised by the PHED officials as part of the Sanitation Week being organised in the state this year. The year 2008 has been declared the International Year of Sanitation which aims to address these challenges by raising awareness of the benefits of good hygiene and by helping to break the taboos about speaking out for changes in behaviour.
The School Sanitation and Hygiene Education, widely known as SSHE, is a comprehensive programme to ensure child-friendly water supply, toilet and hand washing facilities in the schools and promote behavioral change by hygiene education. The importance of SSHE was emphasised at the Third South Asia Conference on Sanitation (SACOSAN) held in Delhi from 16-21 November.
At present, the SSHE is implemented under the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) and given special thrust by following the proven route of teacher-children-family-community where child is a change-agent playing an effective role on sustained basis to spread the message of improved sanitary and healthy practices.
The main goal of the GOI is to eradicate the practice of open defecation by 2010. To give fillip to this endeavour, GOI has launched Nirmal Gram Puraskar to recognise the efforts in terms of cash awards for fully covered PRI (Panchayat Raj Instituitions), and those individuals and institutions who have contributed significantly in ensuring total sanitary practices in their area of operation.
In the past two years, Assam has bagged eighteen Nirmal Gram Puraskars. Nareswar Kakati, Secretary, PHED, Assam told TEHELKA, “Our main target is to initiate behavioural change in the people using innovative means, paying special attention to whether they belong to the hilly terrain or the plains” The play is a small step in this direction but the sanitation campaign in Assam still has a long way to go.
ends
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