2024-09-05 14:05:32
New Delhi: The effect of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ is starting to show. This campaign is saving the lives of thousands of young children. This has been revealed in a research published in the Nature journal. The research states that between 2011 and 2020, the lives of 60,000 to 70,000 children have been saved every year due to the construction of toilets. Prime Minister Modi himself has shared this research on his X account. He said that I am happy that this study highlighted the impact of efforts like Swachh Bharat Mission. Access to proper toilets plays an important role in reducing infant and child mortality. Sanitation has become a game-changer for public health. I am happy that India has played a leading role in this.
Know who has done the research
This research has been done jointly by researchers from the International Food Policy Research Institute, University of California and Ohio State University. They studied infant mortality and mortality of children under the age of five in 35 states and 640 districts from 2011 to 2020. Soyra Gune, author of the research paper, said that most of the focus on reducing mortality in low and middle-income countries is on prevention and treatment during pregnancy and postpartum. Gune, a research analyst at the International Food Policy Research Institute, says that there is very little evidence available on the relationship between large-scale investment in sanitation and mortality in these countries.
Every year 60 to 70 thousand innocent lives are saved
The Swachh Bharat Mission aimed to build toilets in homes, communities and public places. This also included converting dirty toilets to flush toilets and developing waste management systems. Gune says that his research shows that improving water and sanitation conditions can reduce infant mortality. This is especially important in countries like India, where the problem of open defecation is very high.
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‘Clean India Mission’ is good news for children
Research published in Nature on September 2 states that in districts where more than 30 percent toilets were built under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the infant mortality rate decreased by 5.3. At the same time, the mortality rate of children under the age of five was less than 6.8. The report said that after the Swachh Bharat Mission, a rapid decline in infant and child mortality was seen in India as compared to the years before the Swachh Bharat Mission. This mission was started in 2014. Its objective was to make the area free from open defecation and improve the sanitation system.
The centre will take the cleanliness drive forward even faster
According to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the second phase of the mission is being implemented. In this, the focus is on making Indian cities garbage free by 2026. This research shows a direct relationship between the availability of sanitation facilities and infant and child deaths. The emphasis on India’s National Sanitation Campaign has resulted in a decrease in infant and child mortality. Research has found that if national sanitation campaigns are run in a better way, then it will have a good effect on the health of children.