NEW DELHI, Feb 4: Separate toilet facilities for male and female users are being constructed near all toll plazas as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission and the Government aims to create Wayside Amenities every 40-60 kilometers along the national highways, the Rural Development Ministry informed the Lok Sabha.
This information was given by Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in a written reply on Monday while quoting the information provided by the Road Transport and Highways Ministry.
“So far as construction of public toilets near toll plazas of National/State Highways are concerned, as per information provided by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), as a part of Swachh Bharat Mission, separate toilet blocks for males/females toilets are being constructed near/at the toll plazas on project stretches under the jurisdiction of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) since 2015,” the minister said in his reply.
“Further, in order to empower people to report any issues on highway (including toilets/public convenience) Rajmarg Yatra application has been recently developed for use by National Highway users,” Chouhan said.
The NHAI as part of its internal mechanism and to work on improving the condition of public conveniences has recently provisioned the module for toilet cleanliness in NHAI One application, wherein the toilets are to be inspected on the regular basis and AI tools are used to confirm their cleanliness.
Over 1,300 toilet blocks have been registered on NHAI One application for monitoring of their cleanliness, the reply added.
The contracts of the tolling agencies specify in detail the Service Level Agreement (SLA) requirement for maintenance of toilet facilities failing which a penalty of Rs 1,00,000 per default per month can be levied by the authority.
Till date, penalty of approximately Rs 46 lakh have been imposed on the tolling agencies.
The NHAI, through National Highways Logistics Management Limited (NHLML), envisions development of Wayside Amenities (WSAs) at approximate intervals of 40-60 km along the National Highways and Expressways, the minister added.
“Public toilets have been provisioned as mandatory facilities on these Wayside Amenities. Currently, 455 WSAs have been awarded across the country and 90 WSAs are operational along National Highways/Expressways,” he said.
Rajasthan has the highest number of Wayside Amenities, the figure for which stands at 58, followed by Haryana and Madhya Pradesh (48), Gujarat (45), Uttar Pradesh (44), Punjab (35) and Andhra Pradesh (34).
The reply added that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has informed that sanitation is a state subject under 7th schedule of the Constitution and by the 74th amendment of the Constitution of India, the devolution of power has been made to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) for water and sanitation services.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs supplements the efforts of States/ULBs through the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U).
Under SBMU, 67.57 lakh Individual Household Latrines (IHHLs) and 6.52 lakh Community/Public Toilets (CT/PTs)/Urinals have been constructed as on 31.12.2024.
The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti has informed that the Department has already instructed State Governments to construct Community Sanitary Complexes (CSCs) in public places, market place, tourist place, highways, bus stands, etc. Gram Panchayats own the ultimate responsibility for Operation and Maintenance (O & M) of these complexes. 2.51 lakh Community Sanitary Complexes have been constructed so far under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Grameen (SBM-G) since 2014-15.
SBM(G) was launched on nd October 2, 2014 with the aim to eliminate open defecation in rural areas by 2nd October, 2019. All the villages of the country declared themselves Open Defecation Free (ODF) by 2nd October, 2019.
SBM(G) Phase-II is being implemented during the period from 2020-21 to 2025-26 with the aim to sustain ODF status and Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM). (PTI)
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