19-Nov-2020: Shri Hardeep Singh Puri launches Safaimitra Suraksha Challenge across 243 Cities
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, MoS, I/C, Housing and Urban Affairs today stated that Government of India is committed to ensure that no person needs to enter a sewer or septic tank, unless absolutely unavoidable in the interest of greater public hygiene. Launching the Safaimitra Suraksha Challenge at a webinar in New Delhi, he added that within this context we are today setting another milestone by launching the Safaimitra Suraksha Challenge which aims to ensure that no life of any sewer or septic tank cleaner is ever lost again owing to the issue of ‘hazardous cleaning. He further said that this is in line with our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision who has always placed the safety and dignity of sanitation workers at the core of the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U).
The Challenge, aptly launched on the occasion of World Toilet Day, is aimed at preventing ‘hazardous cleaning’ of sewers and septic tanks and promote their mechanized cleaning. The virtual event saw the Chief Secretaries, State Mission Directors and other senior State/ Union Territory and city officials coming together to take a pledge on behalf of 243 cities to mechanize all sewer and septic tank cleaning operations by 30th April 2021, and gave their commitment to work towards preventing any deaths from hazardous entry. The Webinar was also attended by Secretaries of Ministry of Social Justice, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, and Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, who spoke about how their Ministries were contributing to the cause of mechanizing such cleaning practices.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Puri said, “The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act (2013) and various judgements of Hon'ble Supreme Court expressly prohibit hazardous cleaning, i.e. manual entry into a septic tank or sewer without protective gear and observing operating procedures. Despite this, recurring episodes of human fatalities among those engaged in cleaning of septic tanks and sewers, typically belonging to the economically disadvantaged and marginalized communities of society, continue to be an issue of concern.” Shri Puri highlighted that the success of the challenge does not only depend on the intent and commitment of political representatives, bureaucrats or Municipal authorities but also on the citizens of the country. He added that just like citizens have taken complete ownership of the Swachhata of their cities, their involvement in this endeavor is absolutely crucial. He appealed to everyone to be vigilant and responsible and play their part in saving the lives of the Sanitation or Swachhata Commandos.
Explaining the contours of the Challenge, Shri Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, MoHUA said “The Challenge will focus extensively on creating citizen awareness on this critical issue along with infrastructure creation for mechanized cleaning and capacity building of workforce. Along with this, a dedicated helpline number has been set up to register complaints and provide real-time solutions on desludging or sewer overflow. The actual on-ground assessment of participating cities will be conducted in May 2021 by an independent agency and results of the same will be declared on 15 August 2021.” Cities will be awarded in three sub-categories – with population of more than 10 lakhs, 3-10 lakhs and upto 3 lakhs, with a total prize money of Rs 52 crores to be given to winning cities across all categories.
The event saw the launch of a series of advisories prepared by Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO), MoHUA. These included a ‘Training Module for Sanitary Workers on Cleaning of Sewer and Septic Tanks’, a document on ‘Equipment & Workforce Norms for Managing Waterborne Sanitation in India’ and Consultative Document on ‘Land Application of Faecal Sludge’. MoHUA also released a series of posters as part of a citizen centric behavior change communication campaign on the subject of hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks. All documents released today are available on the Swachh Bharat Mission -Urban portal.
The second half of the event was an Open Forum in the format of a panel discussion where several States and cities such as Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Surat, Hyderabad and Ludhiana shared their experiences and best practices on the subject of ‘Manhole to Machine Hole Transformation’. The panelists were joined by National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC), Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI) and Delhi Jal Board, National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and sewer/ septic tank equipment manufacturer Kam Avida who shared their offerings of products and services to complement MoHUA’s efforts in the Challenge.
Since its launch in 2014, SBM-U has made significant progress in the area of both sanitation and solid waste management. 4337 Urban local bodies (ULBs) have been declared open defecation free (ODF) (except 35 ULBs of West Bengal), 1319 cities certified ODF+ and 489 cities certified ODF++. Moreover, over 62 lakhs individual household toilets and over 5.9 lakhs community/ public toilets have been constructed. Additionally, over 59,900 toilets across 2900+ cities have been made live on Google Maps. In the area of solid waste management, 97% of wards have 100% door-to door collection while 67% of the total waste generated is being processed. A total of six cities have been certified as 5 Star, 86 as 3 star and 64 as 1 star under the Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free Cities.
31-Jul-2020: ARHCs to be implemented by utilising existing Government funded vacant houses through PPP Model
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ble Minister of State (I/C), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) released a ARHCs Knowledge Pack (AKP) here today via a Video Conference. Shri Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, MoHUA presided over the function which was attended by senior officers of State Governments/UTs and representatives of NAREDCO, CREDAI, FICCI, CII and ASSOCHAM connected through webinar. COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in massive reverse migration of workers/ urban poor in the country. In line with Hon'ble Prime Minister's clarion call of 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat', Union Cabinet on July 8, 2020, approved Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs) as a sub scheme under Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (Urban) to provide ease of living to urban migrants/poor.
ARHCs will be implemented through two Models:
Model-1: Utilizing existing Government funded vacant houses to convert into ARHCs through Public Private Partnership or by public agencies for a period of 25 years.
- The scheme provides an opportunity for all States/UTs to convert their existing vacant houses constructed under various Central/ State Government schemes into ARHCs.
- A model RFP has been shared with all States for customisation and issuance by them to select a concessionaire.
Model-2: Construction, Operation and Maintenance of ARHCs by Public/ Private Entities on their own available vacant land for a period of 25 years.
- A large portion of available vacant land is lying unutilized with various Industries, Trade Associations, Manufacturing Companies, Educational/ Health Institutions, Development Authorities, Housing Boards, Central/ State Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and other such Entities. By providing with appropriate policy support, enabling suitable provisions and incentives, these available vacant lands can be utilised effectively for developing affordable housing facilities to migrants/ poor.
- Further, MoHUA will issue Expression of Interest (EoI) for shortlisting of Entities by ULBs to Construct, Operate and Maintain ARHCs on their own available vacant land.
ARHCs Knowledge Pack includes following documents:
- Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to be signed with States/UTs
- Operational Guidelines of ARHCs,
- Model Request for Proposal (RFP) for selection of Concessionaire by States/UTs/ULBs under Model-1
- Expression of Interest (EOI) for shortlisting of Entities under Model-2
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).
ARHC scheme has been framed after series of consultation with concerned Central Ministries/Departments, States/UTs and other Private/ Public stakeholders. AKP has been devised to provide support to all stakeholders in implementing ARHCs. A continued cooperation in successful implementation of this Scheme will not only benefit urban migrants/poor in need but also accelerate entrepreneurship and investment in rental housing market and give boost to the economy. It will be a win-win-win model for all.
Incentives/Benefits proposed for Private/Public Entities: To make this a lucrative and viable business opportunity for Entities, Central Govt. will provide Concessional Project finance under Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) & Priority Sector Lending (PSL), Exemption in Income Tax and GST and Technology Innovation Grant for promotion of innovative technologies in ARHCs. Further, State/UT Govt. will provide Use Permission changes, 50% additional FAR/FSI free of cost, Single Window Approval within 30 days, Trunk Infrastructure facility and Municipal charges at par with residential property.
A mobile application of CREDAI - Awaas App and an e-Commerce Portal of NAREDCO - Housing For All was launched by the Housing Minister on the occasion. These online platforms will leverage technology and provide benefits to home buyers in changing market practices by providing effective solutions. These will serve as gateway for home buyers from around the world to connect with developers and choose their dream homes from RERA registered projects.
The event had a large participation from States/UTs/ULBs from across the country, Real Estate industry captains and industry Chambers. All stakeholders had first-hand familiarization with ARHC scheme and its implementation tools in the form of AKP. MoHUA will extend all possible support for successful implementation of the scheme.
14-Oct-2019: India and Netherlands launched the second phase of the LOTUS-HR (Local Treatment of Urban Sewage streams for Healthy Reuse plant ) as a part of joint collaboration.
During the visit of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty, Queen Maxima of the Kingdom of the Netherlands a joint launch of the second phase of the Local Treatment of Urban Sewage streams for Healthy Reuse (LOTUS-HR) program was done by the Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Health & Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan. The launch programme was held during the visit of Netherlands King & the Queen to the India-Netherlands water laboratory at the Barapullah drainin Delhi.
Announcing the scaling up of LOTUS-HR for treatment of sewage water at a function in New Delhi, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said “Today, we are going to enter into the second phase, wherein 10 thousand L sewage water will be treated per day. Dutch and Indian companies are contributing to the project by sharing their existing technologies and will showcase how one can treat urban waste water into clean water for various purposes. We are also in the process of emulating this in other projects across the country”.
The project was initiated in July 2017 and aims to demonstrate a novel holistic (waste) water management approach that will produce clean water which can be reused for various purposes. The innovative pilot scale modular plant upon commissioning will treat 10,000 L sewage water per day and will showcase a self-sustaining model for the end user.
This pilot scale facility will employ multiple technologies so that the data generated at the pilot scale becomes a tool-box of treatment technologies for replication at other sites in Delhi as well as other parts of India where similar drains exist. The rationale is that the mixing and matching of technologies from this tool-box will depend on the quantity (flow rate) and quality (pollutant load) of drain water, land availability, site accessibility as well as topography.
The LOTUS-HR project is jointly supported by Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India and Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research /STW, Government of Netherlands.
The visit of their Majesties to the India-Netherlands water laboratory signifies the importance of the on-going collaboration between both countries while further strengthening the collaboration by expanding the activities through second phase of LOTUS-HR project for cleaning up the Barapullah drain.
During their visit to the water laboratory, their Majesties were also informed about collaboration in the area of water technology and witnessed project demonstrations by the involved researchers. Their Majesties also appreciated the numerous initiatives in this regard.
Wetlab a Design challenge jointly supported by DBT-BIRAC and Netherlands Enterprise Agency is a novel way of competition which provides a unique learning and networking platform for both Indian and Dutch young professionals and students to think differently for innovative ideas to solve India’s urban water challenges and contribute to cleaning up India’s rivers.
The intent of Wetlab is focussed on making best ideas becoming an input for the realisation of the Water Experience Center that may further lead to turning the project site into an attractive center for education and technology demonstration for students, young professionals and creating opportunities for startups.
The Indo-Dutch collaboration aims to pave new ways to create techno entrepreneurship and encourage a sustainable business model to convert sewage water into clean water for healthy re-use.