Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Uttarakhand - Chandrababu Naidu, Manohar Lal Khattar and Harish Rawat respectively - on Wednesday called upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi and submitted the final report of the Sub-Group of Chief Ministers on Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan.
Prime Minister Modi, in turn, complimented the Chief Ministers for their efforts, saying that the task of accomplishing Swachh Bharat, though difficult, is not impossible to achieve.
The Sub-Group of Chief Ministers on Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan was constituted on March 24, following the decision taken in the first Governing Council Meeting of the NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog held on February 8, and consisted of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and West Bengal as members with Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh as the Convener of the Sub-Group, which meets four times in New Delhi, Chandigarh and Bengaluru for deliberations on various subjects.
The Terms of Reference of the Sub-Group included examining financial requirements for comprehensive implementation of the Swachh Bharat Mission and to suggest measures for meeting budgetary needs; to recommend robust institutional mechanisms for effective implementation; to recommend measures for technological support for different components of SBM, including solid and liquid waste management in rural and urban areas; to examine models for private sector participation in the Swachh Bharat Mission and to suggest ways for substantial improvement in participation of private sector and civil society organisations for effective implementation; to recommend ways to make the SBM sustainable; and any other measures.
Given the scale and importance of the programme, it has been suggested that the sharing pattern of funds for this programme between Centre and States may be in the ratio of 75:25, while for hilly States it may be kept at 90:10. To raise resources for the programme, Swachh Bharat bonds may be issued and a Swachh Bharat cess may be levied by the Central Government on petrol, diesel, telecom services and also on accumulated waste produced by plants generating mineral waste like coal, aluminum, and iron ore.
