More than 1.17
lakh scavengers will be liberated from manual scavenging after
completion of sanctioned schemes under the Integrated Low Cost
Sanitation Scheme (ILCS). So far 861 schemes in 1514 towns have
been sanctioned. These include construction of 18.75 lakh low
cost sanitation units and conversion of 17.91 lakh dry latrines
to such units. Total project cost of sanctioned schemes amounts
to Rs. 1473.46 crores. Against this, a sum of Rs. 501.42 crores
has been sanctioned as subsidy and Rs. 451.63 crores as loan
by the Government to the States. So far, 17.01 lakh units have
been constructed/converted and another 2.94 lakh are under construction.
Out of these, 8.80 lakh low cost sanitation units in 330 towns
have been constructed during the last four years alone. Construction
of these low cost sanitary units has helped in liberation of
37,532 scavengers. A total of 509 towns in the country have
already been declared scavenger free.
Objective of
the Integrated Low Cost Sanitation Scheme is to totally eliminate
manual scavenging and improve the overall sanitation in towns
having a population not exceeding 5 lakhs as per 1981 census.
