90% Indians have toilet facility today: Modi
New Delhi, Sep 12 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that 90 per cent of Indians have toilet facility at their homes now as his government had got 8.3 crore toilets constructed since 2014 to make the country free of open defecation.
"Today, 90 per cent Indians have toilet facility, which was only 40 per cent before 2014. Over 4.15 lakh villages, 430 districts, 2,800 towns, 19 states and Union Territories have been declared open defecation-free," the Prime Minister said through a video posted on his Twitter account.
The Modi government came to power in May 2014 and constructed the toilets under the Swachh Bharat Mission.
He said the World Health Organisation had expressed the possibility of saving lives of three lakh Indian children by the use of toilets.
Modi called upon the countrymen to come together at 9.30 a.m. on September 15 to mark the commencement of the "Swachhata Hi Seva Movement". The campaign will continue till October 2.
"On October 2, we mark the start of Gandhiji's 150th birth anniversary. It is also the day Swachh Bharat Mission completes four years of being a historic mass movement aimed at fulfilling Bapu's dream of a 'Clean India'. The ‘Swachhata Hi Seva Movement' is a great way to pay tributes to Bapu. Come, be a part of this movement and strengthen the efforts to create a Swachh Bharat!
"I look forward to interacting with those who have worked assiduously on the ground to strengthen the Swachh Bharat Mission after which cleanliness activities will begin. I salute all those working towards a Swachh Bharat!" he said.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
