India has made significant progress towards access to clean water and sanitation in recent years, and the challenge is to sustain the success achieved. With sanitation and hygiene being the focus of today’s India, the future of cleanliness goals rests on the shoulders of the young leaders in the country. Today’s generation is using all that they have to bring about changes in many fields for a better tomorrow. With the success gained under the Swachh Bharat Mission, entrepreneurs, innovators, social activists, and leaders across the country are making contributions to ensure that sanitation and hygiene are accessible to all across the country.
Today’s youth are not only direct beneficiaries of the existing policies on water and sanitation, but they are also important stakeholders in India’s journey towards sustainable sanitation goals. The success of water and sanitation campaigns depends on the active participation of the youth, and many young leaders have already set examples.
Take the case of Ashwini Agarwal and Sahaj Umang Singh of the BasicSHIT organisation. The duo is using discarded water cans to create cheap public sanitation infrastructure like urinals and public toilets in public areas .
Students like Abishek G, Akshatha Devi Lolla, and Suchithra S from PSG College of Engineering, Coimbatore, have managed to conserve 66 percent more water with each flush just by changing the shape of the toilet. Similarly, Ananya Sah, Mohammaed Aslam Villan, and Shubham Tiwari from IIT Bombay have created a solar-powered water purifier. Innovations like these from students across the country can help create decentralized solutions that can mitigate the challenges of sustainable sanitation.
The government has been supporting young entrepreneurs and innovators in the water and sanitation sectors with programmes like the Atal New India Challenge, which invites solutions from innovators for problems like sanitation, water management, and more. Educational institutions are also catching up with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) – which launched a new MTech programme in drinking water and sanitation.
These success stories and many more from across the country highlight the fact that the youth in India are rising to meet the challenges of sanitation, hygiene, and water availability. Recognising, celebrating, and encouraging the youth to use their skills and modern technology to find solutions is the best way to ensure that all Indians can have access to potable water as well as safe sanitation, no matter where they are.
Decentralised and modern solutions to these age-old problems are helping India achieve its goals outlined in the Swachh Bharat Mission and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of healthy living and sanitation for all, from grassroots movements in remote villages to large initiatives in some of the biggest cities of the country,
Ensuring access to water and sanitation for all by 2030 is part of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 6). India has already led by example with the success of the world’s largest sanitation drive, the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen). Now it’s time to increase the participation of young leaders in the decision making and implementation of policies around water and sanitation.
Mission Swachhta Aur Paani, a News18 and Harpic India initiative, advocates the availability and usage of clean water and safe sanitation for all. Let’s all come together and join hands for ‘Mission Swachhta Aur Paani – Mil Kar Lein Ye Zimmedari’ to ensure sustainable and inclusive sanitation.
A grand Telethon will bring together government representatives, celebrities, artists, change makers, policy experts, and youth icons to celebrate the cause on the occasion of World Toilet Day on November 19. Watch the Telethon LIVE on November 19, 12 pm onwards at: https://www.news18.com/MissionSwachhtaPaani/
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