Current Scenario of Personal Hygiene and Sanitation in India

Personal hygiene maintenance is a practice that contributes to good health. It improves the physical, social and psychological health of humans. Moreover, hygiene practices will prevent the spread of infections and diseases. In India, the major reason behind the infectious disease spread was the lack of personal hygiene. In 2015, half of India’s (568 million people) suffered from deadly diseases due to open defecation in fields and water bodies.  

According to reports, India being the second-largest populated country, lacked basic sanitation facilities. However, rapid progress was noticed in the country with the help of WASH. The organisation has taken steps to improve the country's water, sanitation and hygiene. It also made people aware of the importance of personal hygiene in living a healthy life. Let’s discuss the current scenario of India. 

 

Importance of hygiene practices  

According to WHO, Hygiene is “the practices and conditions taken to maintain health condition and prevent the spread of infectious diseases.” People die because of a lack of water, sanitation and nutrition. Unhygienic practices affect our health in various ways. Infections get contagious to other family members and people living in our surroundings. 

People consume contaminated water and food, which leads to severe infectious diseases like diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid etc. India has recorded 13% of diarrhoeal deaths yearly in children under 5. People living in run-down dwellings get asthma attacks. Practising open defecation leads to microbial infections in humans. These conditions can be life-threatening. This is why personal hygiene is very important. 

Steps were taken by NGOs and Govt. to improve hygiene practices 

Earlier, India alone contributed over 90% of the people in South Asia. It also accounted for half of the 1.2 billion population recording open defecation. With the help of government projects and NGO programs, the country has witnessed great change. People started understanding the importance of personal hygiene for their health and living surroundings. In 2019, the number of people without access to toilets will be reduced by up to 450 million. Here is the success achieved with the help of hygiene and sanitation programmes.  

Swachh Bharat Mission  

The major objective of the Swachh Bharat Mission was to reduce open defecation in the country. In the period of 2018 to 2019, more than 90% of the household had access to toilets. This was a huge success of the programme. The country has noticed a massive jump in providing sanitation facilities compared to past years. Around 102.8 million toilets were constructed in India. The success reached heights when 603,175 villages were declared open-defecation-free in just five years.  

The Swachh Bharat Mission taught people the purpose and importance of personal hygiene. Campaigns were held to raise awareness among rural people who were unaware of infections due to unhealthy practices. Over 300 million people participated in the behaviour change campaigns.   

The efforts of the mission noticed economic benefits too. It has also increased job opportunities. The improvement of sanitation infrastructure has led to the employment of more than 2 million workers.

  

UNICEF  

UNICEF has played an important role in improving hygiene and sanitation in India. Initiatives such as WASH and the National Rural Drinking Water Programme were aided by UNICEF.  

The WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) programme aims to be crucial for human health and well-being. Its objective was implemented in public places like schools and health facilities to reduce unsanitary practices. Reports have shown that 22% of schools didn’t have proper toilets for girls. Also, over 55% of preschools had no access to toilets. The key advancements were implemented in India to address its unhygienic issues. UNICEF also partnered with the Swachh Bharat Mission for sanitation developments.  

UNICEF Country Programme in India has taken a vital collaborative move. The WASH programme has become a cross-cutting support system. All these have led to aware people of India the importance of personal hygiene, which aided in growth and development. Implementing district-wide WASH interventions in India led to positive behaviour change in People. 

WASH Allies  

USAID and UNICEF have come forward to cooperate with the Indian Government. In September 2020, USAID witnessed achievements, which included improvement in access to safe drinking water, development of household and public toilets, and reduction in public defecation. WASH has also led the Sunidhi Toilet project to construct easily installable public toilets. The immense support of WASH has contributed to helping every individual to maintain personal hygiene.  

With the WASH allies, the Indian Government has accelerated its efforts to assure its citizens get the right to WASH services. The programme also checks that basic personal hygiene is maintained in rural areas.  

Final Thoughts  

The Government of India and NGOs' contribution has helped the country to improve its hygienic conditions. It led people to become aware of practising personal hygiene practices. The sanitation and hygiene programmes are putting their best efforts to reach every individual to help them about the importance of living in a hygienic environment.