2.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water at home; rural-urban gap persists
The WHO and UNICEF report finds significant inequalities in basic water, sanitation and hygiene services
Budget focuses on Gramin Swachh Bharat, clean railways
Swachh Bharat Gramin allocated almost 55 per cent higher funds; by 2019 all coaches of Indian Railways to be fitted with bio toilets
World Toilet Day: India needs one toilet every two seconds to achieve target by 2019
The need to construct toilets per minute has increased from 35 to 41; target may stretch up to 2035 due to extremely slow pace
Will India get freedom from open defecation?
Skyrocketing numbers on government websites project a doubtful picture of what has been achieved in one year. Read our Independence Day special
Road to 2030: World, especially Africa, won’t achieve access to clean water, sanitation goal, says UN
Sub-Saharan Africa region lags most & will need 20-21 fold increase in current rates of progress
Environment again not given priority in Delhi Budget for 2020-21
Only Rs 52 crore our of a total Rs 65 thousand crore allotted for city’s air pollution epidemic
Emerging alternatives
A novel project in Kerala tries to introduce a sanitation technology that promises a cleaner and healthier environment
Why alluvial flood plains of north Bihar need alternative sanitation system
Flood is a recurring threat to the sustainability of open defecation free status in Bihar. Unique toilets, built on elevation, can show the way ahead
Excreta as resource: Looking at recovery, reuse of faecal sludge in UP
A critical link in faecal sludge and septage management value chain is reuse of by-products generated, which include treated water as well as …
Where do Indians defecate?
Half of India's population defecates in the open. In all probability, they will continue to do so for the next 10 years
India’s sanitation economy to double by 2021
It would be worth $62 billion in three years and the credit would go to Swachh Bharat Mission, say speakers at 18th World Toilet Summit
Lack of toilets, how much it costs India
Inadequate sanitation has economic impacts across sectors like health and tourism; cost the country 53.8 billion USD in 2006
Doubts dog toilet-building campaign
Over half a billion, which is nearly half of the country’s population, defecate in the open
Gandhian Sanitation: How Kolhapur combined toilet design, biogas to treat faecal sludge
Almost 75 per cent of the district depends on properly designed septic tanks; around 25 per cent of it uses biogas-linked toilets at …
Poverty and inequality a threat to urban poor: UN report
Multidimensionality of urban poverty and inequality should be at the centre of interventions to create an inclusive and equitable urban future …
The missing manual scavengers of India
Government surveys are confined to statutory towns, highlighting the fact that the Centre looks at it as an urban problem
Nearly a third of Nigerians don’t have access to a basic supply of water. This is partly because of loopholes in a law
Corruption, overvaluation of projects and favouritism in contract awards add to problems such as lack of funds, limited government capacity
Cleaning a dirty patch
There has been a massive spike in constructing toilets in record time in Gonda district. But it remains to be seen whether it would lead to real …
Climate change will increase severe stunting by 55 per cent in Sub-Saharan Africa: report
Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly vulnerable to the health risks of climate change because of weak systems in health, infrastructure and environment
Will centralised waste disposal work for Punjab?
Safe waste disposal is a big challenge for the national sanitation overdrive. Punjab has been experimenting with centralised systems to tackle …
Inaugural issue of Down To Earth Hindi exposes poor progress of Swachh Bharat Mission
Besides pointing out the associated risks of poor sanitation, the analysis also shows the enormous challenge before the NDA government
India leads the world’s failure story in eradicating open defecation, malnutrition
New WHO-UNICEF report warns that lack of progress on sanitation would undermine gains from access to safe drinking water
When a river weeps
Reduced to being a receptacle of household and industrial wastes and victimised by lopsided development, the Yamuna, Delhi's lifeline, is crying …
Clean public toilets: A matter of national honour
A survey by the Union housing ministry showed that 55% of public washrooms were either dirty or completely unusable in Delhi
Droughts bring disease: Here are 4 ways they do it
Prolonged dry spells, particularly in semi-arid and arid regions, may have serious impacts, particularly if people aren’t prepared