{"id":40527,"date":"2025-04-07T19:52:49","date_gmt":"2025-04-07T14:22:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=40527"},"modified":"2025-04-17T12:46:11","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T07:16:11","slug":"health-and-sanitation-pillars-of-healthy-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/editorial-analysis\/07-04-2025\/health-and-sanitation-pillars-of-healthy-india","title":{"rendered":"Health and Sanitation: Pillars of a Healthy India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Health<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>On World Health Day (7 April), India showcases a transformative approach, recognizing that health and sanitation are inseparable, with a nationwide revolution in sanitation and water access shaping a healthier future.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Health &amp; Sanitation as a Foundation for Progress&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Health is not just the absence of disease, but a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Sanitation, often considered its silent twin, plays a preventive role in ensuring community health.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>According to WHO, over 60% of diseases in India are linked to poor sanitation and unsafe water.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Diarrheal diseases, malnutrition, and parasitic infections are rampant among children, directly affecting literacy, productivity, and life expectancy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Universal access to healthcare is essential for reducing disease burden and improving life expectancy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td colspan=\"2\"><strong>Sanitation: Crucial For Health Objectives<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Health Impact Area<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Sanitation Benefit<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Infectious Disease Control<\/td><td>Reduces cholera, typhoid, hepatitis by breaking transmission<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Maternal &amp; Child Health<\/td><td>Improves birth outcomes, reduces child mortality<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Mental &amp; Social Health<\/td><td>Enhances dignity, privacy\u2014especially for women<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Economic Productivity<\/td><td>Reduces disease burden, increases school and work attendance<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Health and Sanitation: Progress &amp; Suggestions (NITI Aayog and NFHS-6 Projections)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Life Expectancy:<\/strong> Increased to 70.1 years (2024).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM):<\/strong> It aims to build over 100 million toilets, leading to <strong>open defecation-free (ODF) status<\/strong> in all rural districts.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>SBM Gramin Phase-II (2020\u20132025)<\/strong>: Emphasis on ODF Plus villages and solid and liquid waste management. According to the SBM Dashboard, over 6 lakh villages have been declared ODF.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>SBM 2.0 (Urban): <\/strong>Zero landfill cities, biogas plants from waste.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>SDG 6.2:<\/strong> India has declared itself <strong>Open Defecation Free (ODF) in 2019, <\/strong>11 years ahead of time.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It focuses on achieving access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all by 2030.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Gates Foundation<\/strong> reported in 2017 that there were 58% higher cases of wasting among children in non ODF areas.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A UNICEF study (2017)<\/strong> found that 93% of women felt safer after getting a toilet at home and ODF families saved \u20b950,000 annually in health-care costs, ensuring higher savings.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Health Mission (NHM):<\/strong> It includes the <strong>Rural and Urban Health Missions,<\/strong> focuses on accessible, affordable, and quality healthcare, especially for vulnerable groups. Between 2005\u20132022, it led to:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A reduction in infant mortality rate (IMR) from 58 (2005) to 28 (2020).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Institutional deliveries increased from 39% to 89%, as per NFHS-5.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Jal Jeevan Mission: <\/strong>Drinking water quality &amp; hygiene education.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It targets <strong>100% coverage by 2025.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>WHO estimates suggest that it could avert four lakh diarrhoeal deaths with safe drinking water supply at home.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Research by Nobel Laureate<\/strong> Dr. Michael Kremer has shown that nearly 30% infant deaths can be reduced if safe water is made available to families for drinking and 1.36 lakh child deaths (under five years) can be prevented with universal tap coverage.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT 2.0): <\/strong>City sanitation mapping &amp; smart sewage tracking<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Role of Self Help Groups (SHGs):<\/strong> Over 2.48 million women have been trained to test water quality, and women-led Self-Help Groups are managing sanitation assets, recycling centres, and even sanitary napkin production.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Concerns and Persistent Gaps<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Inequitable Access:<\/strong> According to NFHS-5:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Only 70% of rural households have access to improved sanitation facilities.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>States like Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha continue to lag in access to clean water and maternal healthcare.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>High Out-of-Pocket Expenditure (OOPE): <\/strong>Even after PM-JAY, OOPE accounts for over 50% of total health expenditure, often due to medicines and diagnostics being excluded from coverage.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Malnutrition and Stunting:<\/strong> As per NFHS-5:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>35.5% of children under 5 are stunted.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>19.3% are wasted, with worse conditions in tribal belts and rural areas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Urban Sanitation Challenges: <\/strong>A NITI Aayog report notes that while rural sanitation improved significantly, slum areas in metro cities face poor sewerage and garbage collection infrastructure.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Urban Slums:<\/strong> Densely populated informal settlements suffer from inadequate toilets, waste disposal systems, and clean water access.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Behavioral Change:<\/strong> Infrastructure must be coupled with community-led education to eliminate age-old taboos and misinformation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Gendered Sanitation:<\/strong> Lack of clean and safe toilets in schools and workplaces disproportionately affects women and girls, leading to dropout and reduced mobility.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Other Challenges:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Slippage:<\/strong> Nearly 8% of rural toilets are non-functional or unused due to water shortages<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Manual scavenging: <\/strong>Still reported in some urban clusters, despite the 2013 <strong>Prohibition Act.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Waste treatment:<\/strong> Only 39% of cities have operational faecal sludge treatment units<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Behavioral change:<\/strong> A key hurdle, especially in peri-urban belts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Forward: Road Map for the Future<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Sustained Civic Participation:<\/strong> Local governance and community ownership are crucial for the upkeep of sanitation facilities.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Public-Private Partnerships:<\/strong> Collaboration with NGOs, corporates (under CSR), and tech startups can scale innovation in water filtration, waste recycling, and health monitoring.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Integrated Health-Sanitation Education:<\/strong> School curriculums must emphasize hygiene practices alongside biology, linking textbook knowledge with real-life relevance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Climate-Resilient Sanitation Infrastructure:<\/strong> With increasing climate risks, sanitation facilities must be flood-resistant and sustainable.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Urban Sanitation Master Plans:<\/strong> Modernize drainage, build STPs, and enhance slum services<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Boost Preventive Healthcare:<\/strong> School health programs, menstrual hygiene initiatives, and vaccine awareness.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>Daily Mains Practice Question<\/strong><br><strong>[Q]<\/strong> Considering the transformative impact of health and sanitation on India&#8217;s socio-economic development, do you believe the current government initiatives are sufficient to address gaps in rural and urban areas?<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/op-ed\/health-and-sanitation-as-the-pillars-of-a-healthy-india\/article69420464.ece\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Source: TH<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/UPSC-Editorial-Analysis-7-April-2025.PDF.pdf\">Download PDF<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On World Health Day (7 April), India showcases a transformative approach, recognizing that health and sanitation are inseparable, with a nationwide revolution in sanitation and water access shaping a healthier future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial-analysis"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40527","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40527"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40527\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41368,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40527\/revisions\/41368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40527"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40527"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40527"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}