Written by V.Ganapathy
BORDA Partner - ExNoRa International
As stipulated by the Ministry of Urban Development, New Delhi, the Tamil Nadu State Urban Sanitation Policy has been finalised at a meeting convened in Chennai on 20th June 2010; it would facilitate implementation of the NUSP in Tamil Nadu. At the meeting convened by the Directorate of Municipal Administration in Chennai, officials of Municipal Corporations, elected Chairman, NGOs and experts from the Departments of the Metropolitan Development Authority, Water and Drainage board and so on discussed the broad features of the NUSP and how to dovetail the same in tune with the geographical and other special features of the State.
Tamil Nadu has a long densely populated coastline and a high percentage (44%) of people living in urban areas. It has been estimated that as much as 60% of the population (about 7 crores) will be living in urban areas by 2026. The State may well be the most urbanised part of the Country with the exception of New Delhi. The draft State Urban Sanitation Policy presented by the Director of Municipal Administration, Mr. Senthil Kumar, made it clear that the future funding pattern will be integrated and holistic development of urban areas as against project-based, location-based funding with specific objectives in one or other part of the municipal town. On the lines of the NUSP, the State Policy aimed at city-wide planning, adoption of appropriate technologies with options depending on physical features of the town, stress on liquid waste management, solid waste management (including human waste) sustainable operation and maintenance systems, participatory planning by the civil society and an important role for NGOs and CBOs in the entire process of planning, execution, monitoring and evaluation.
The highlights of the policy are total sanitation coverage, adequate water supply and sustainable and environmental-friendly solid waste management practices. An important pre-condition is the willingness of the local body to raise minimum funds for the execution of the project with the aim of making the services financially viable in the long run. The policy outlined the process of NUSP i.e formation of a State Sanitation Task Force which will assist Municipalities to draw up City Sanitation Plans and provide support and suggestions for implementation of the same by the ULBs in a participatory manner. The aim of the State Sanitation Policy is to make all cities and towns totally sanitised, healthy and livable and ensure and sustain good public health and environmental outcomes for all their citizens. A special focus is hygienic and affordable sanitation facilities for the urban poor and women.
The Policy draft, realising the key role of changing the mindset of key stakeholders to make the programme a success, outlines a vibrant communication strategy to generate awareness on sanitation both at the household and service provider levels including the government.
The criteria for grading of towns based on their performance in implementing the Policy and for being eligible to win the newly instituted Nirmal Shahar Puraskar were highlighted. The final draft was drawn up based on the very tangible and useful inputs provided by the various stakeholders at the meeting.
