ODF Plus: Telangana leads the chart, BJP ruled States rank bottom

Hyderabad: Innovative schemes and political will to excel have been at the core of the TRS government’s administration in Telangana, and this has manifested time and again in the State setting benchmarks in various fields for others to follow. The government’s stress on rural development through its path-breaking programmes such as Palle Pragathi, a brainchild […]

Hyderabad: Innovative schemes and political will to excel have been at the core of the TRS government’s administration in Telangana, and this has manifested time and again in the State setting benchmarks in various fields for others to follow. The government’s stress on rural development through its path-breaking programmes such as Palle Pragathi, a brainchild of Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, has paid rich dividends as in the case of the rankings for Open Defecation Free (ODF) plus villages under the Swachh Bharat Mission where Telangana is placed in the top position with a staggering score of 99.98 per cent as on May 17.

Compare this with the rankings of BJP-ruled States that apparently enjoy the privilege of having ‘Double Engine’ growth model, and the results are stark and reveal its utter failure. Save for Karnataka, which itself has managed to bring only a measly 25.91 per cent of villages under the ODF plus category, other BJP-governned States like Gujarat (19.36 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (10.69 per cent) and Uttar Pradesh (4.54 per cent) have barely taken off on this crucial aspect of rural hygiene and development.

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In Telangana, 12,766 of the 12,769 villages in the State are featured in the ODF Plus list, leaving just three villages yet to make it to the list! Tamil Nadu is placed second with 11,569 villages (92.37%) declared ODF Plus.

What is more important and significant is the fact that notwithstanding the lack of support from the BJP government at the Centre, Telangana made it to the top of the ODF plus list, and this is mainly on account of the government’s planning and effective implementation of several measures for rural development.

Under Palle Pragathi programme, several works are being executed with special focus on sanitation. This apart, the State government enacted a new Telangana Panchayat Raj Act to ensure holistic development of villages. Apart from setting up 12,769 vermicompost sheds, water tankers and trolleys have been distributed to each Gram Panchayat to ensure proper sanitation. Garbage bins have also been distributed to all households as part of solid waste management.

“Palle Pragathi, a one-of-its-kind programme in the country that no other State government has conceived of, is the defining factor in rural development in Telangana and is responsible for the top ranking,” a senior official from Panchayatraj and Rural Development department said, adding that the effective implementation of the programme was bringing laurels to the State, not to mention the awards to the State Government.

Just as in the case of ODF plus villages, Telangana swept the Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) awards given by the union Ministry of Rural Development, with the State accounting for 19 of the top 20 villages identified from across the country for the awards! Barring Aslali panchayat in Gujarat, which is ranked 11th in the list, the remaining 19 panchayats are from Telangana.

As part of SAGY, villages are ranked based on 12 different parameters and they are awarded weightage accordingly for 100 marks. The parameters include Gram Panchayat conducting Environment Creation activities, completing baseline survey and uploading the survey details, whether the draft Village Development Plan got clearance of Gram Sabha, number of non-infrastructure projects completed, number of economic and livelihood activities etc.

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