LUCKNOW: ‘One can bear hunger but cannot hold the urge to ease oneself’, quipped a woman in a zero-sanitation locality of the city. The comment only
gives words to the inevitable innate human need. Despite this, the issue of sanitation lies entangled amidst red-tapism and government apathy. A number of facts obtained from government of Uttar Pradesh (GoUP) stand in support of this.
It is shocking to learn that the state does not have complete figures on urban sanitation coverage, though there are some rough estimates. The UP government 11th plan document is one such source. But the figures only turn the scenario grimmer.
Citing these figures, expert in sanitation with the unicef, Amit Mehrotra said, “Close to 33 per cent households in the urban areas of the state are without toilet facilities, while 50 per cent do not have a sewerage system.”
Adding more he said, “The same document reveals that out of the 629 urban local bodies, only 55 have partial sewerage system. The drainage system is almost non existent in most urban areas. The situation is worse in urban slums, which house more than 30 per cent of a city’s population.”
