Five states -- Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Haryana -- have been able to make all their urban areas "open-defecation free", Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri claimed today.
Addressing a programme here on the third anniversary of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Puri said about 38 lakh household toilets in urban areas have already been built against a target of 66 lakh, and another 14 lakh toilets are under construction.
The Union minister for housing and urban affairs said over two lakh community and public toilets have been built, against a target of five lakh.
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The minister stated that the focus should be now on solid-waste management.
Efforts are on to generate over 500 MW of electricity and over 50 lakh tonnes of compost from municipal solid waste in order to process the entire solid waste generated in urban areas, Puri said.
Stating that sanitation is a "birth right" and "individual responsibility", he claimed that the fortnight- long 'Swacchata-Hi-Sewa' campaign, which concluded today, has witnessed participation from "over 80 lakh people spread over 3.50 lakh activities in urban areas".
The minister also stressed on the need for "life-style change" to realise the objective of the mission.
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