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Good News! Half of India's Villages Are Open Defecation Free, Gov't Announces

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a mission to install solid or liquid waste management systems in October 2014 under the Clean India Campaign to keep the streets and areas clean.
Sputnik
India's Water Ministry announced on Wednesday that half of the country's villages attained Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus status under the second phase of the Swachh Bharat Gramin (SBM-G) Clean India Mission.
An ODF Plus village is a village that is ODF-free and implements either solid or liquid waste management systems.
As many as 296,928 villages have been declared ODF Plus, said the ministry.
Among the top-performing states are Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh, with Goa and Sikkim leading the way among smaller states.
All Union Territories of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadra Nagar Haveli & Daman Diu, and Lakshadweep boast 100% ODF Plus villages.
SBM Grameen Phase-II was launched in February 2020 to ensure that all villages in the country can declare themselves ODF Plus by the end of 2024.
Between 2014-15 and 2021-22, the central government allocated a total of INR 839 billion ($10 billion) to Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen. The allocation for the year 2023-24 is INR 52 million.
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