Speech by the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil, at the Presentation of the Nirmal Gram Puraskar Awards

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am happy here to be in Guwahati. Since assuming the office of the President of India, I was very keen to visit the North-East region of our country. My visit is a fulfillment of a long cherished desire and I begin it with Assam, which is known as the gateway of the region. It is a State replete with natural beauty and well-known as a land of colorful festivals that reflect its rich culture, its traditions and the vibrancy of its people.

It is a great pleasure to have presented the Nirmal Gram Puraskar to the Eastern region states of the country. I am informed that the enthusiasm among Panchayats for the Total Sanitation Campaign has increased tremendously. In 2003, about 40 awards were given and this year the national figure has crossed 11,000 reflecting a positive trend in the number of Gram Panchayats, who are achieving full sanitation coverage in their villages. I am happy to see the presence of a large number of Panchayat representatives here, which shows that the Sanitation Campaign has now truly become a people's campaign.

Sanitation is one of the important indicators that reflect the quality of the life of the people. It is important for the good health of individuals and plays a central role in building clean and hygienic societies. It acts as a catalyst for progress in health and education indicators and, thereby, is a tool for poverty eradication and economic growth. Consumption of unsafe drinking water and lack of sanitation, which can result in lack of personal hygiene, have been the major causes of diseases in developing countries, leading to high child and adult mortality rates particularly in rural areas. Similar conditions were also prevalent in India. To address them in a focused manner, the Central Rural Sanitation Programme was introduced in 1986 with the objective of improving the quality of life of the rural people. This programme was reframed in 1999 as the 'Total Sanitation Campaign' with the view to make sanitation people centric that would be undertaken with their participation on the basis of demand driven approach.

The key to success of such community-based programmes require awareness building and capacity development of stakeholders and institutions, especially Gram Panchayats who have a primary role in carrying forward the sanitation agenda. It is important that village communities are imparted knowledge about technology options to meet user preferences and affordability. I would urge that management of solid and liquid wastes be made an essential part of the sanitation drive. Treated waste can be used as manure to increase agricultural productivity and gas used for cooking. Moreover, waste management contributes to keeping the environs clean. I am told that India has the largest number of deaths due to diarrhoea in the world. Cleanliness is important for eliminating such diseases and building healthy populations. Tree plantations and forests are also important in maintaining the ecological balance.

I am glad to know that, in this programme, schools as well as Anganwadis in villages are being covered. Anganwadi workers must impart basic hygiene education and motivate students to adopt good sanitary habits. Schools should act as entry points to spread the messages of sanitation and hygiene. Children take the message from schools to their homes and from homes it will travel to the community. Many studies have pointed out that one of the reasons for high drop out rates among adolescent girls in our country is lack of sanitation facilities in schools. Imparting education to the girl child is of great importance in making our nation progressive. I would call on Panchayats to focus on this aspect also.

Sanitation has a bearing on the dignity, health and security of women. They benefit most and, therefore, can be the prime movers of the sanitation movement throughout the country. Their involvement has resulted in many achievements and will take the drive to its full success. Half of our population consists of women. Empowering them would mean empowering the social, economic and political aspects of the nation. Their capacity to bring change in society has always been acknowledged. A woman's role is a multi-dimensional one, ranging from being a home-maker to a pillar of stability in society and with great potential to contribute to the economic welfare of the nation. Her role in changing the face of rural India can be immense.

With 70 percent of our population living in villages, the development of India will not be comprehensive or complete unless there is development in our rural areas. Our objective of inclusive development will not be achieved unless villages, where as Mahatma Gandhi used to say the heart of India throbs, do not prosper. Gram Panchayats play a pivotal role in development of villages by carrying out social mobilization. Today, we can be satisfied that we have been able to take democracy to the grassroots level through the Panchayati Raj Constitutional Amendment of 1993, fifteen years ago. Panchayats are now elected representatives of the people as well as decision-makers and stakeholders in the rural development. There are 3.2 million elected local body representatives in the country, making India not only the world's largest democracy, but also the world's most representative democracy. This number is large enough to stimulate a revolution in village development. Grassroot democracy must lead to development of the population at the grassroots.

It was Gandhiji's desire to have Gram Swarajya where villages would function as self-sufficient units propelling the growth of the country. I would urge that Panchayats constantly look at how best to implement and make available basic health and education facilities in the villages. How to create employment opportunities? How to ensure increase in agricultural productivity? How to set up agro-based units? How to create awareness to eradicate social evils? How to ensure all children go to school? How to support women in becoming self-sufficient? This model of overall growth is being adopted in areas of our country. Recently, I visited a village close to Pune and was deeply impressed by how its people had, through multiple activities, generated income. This resulted in reverse migration. Many who had left their villages for cities were now returning there to work and live there. Many national and global problems, whether food security or climate change, can be tackled by looking at sustainable development of villages and the agricultural sector.

Villages also have an important role in maintaining peace and to be units of tolerance and harmonious living. Panchayats should take an oath that they will not resort to violence in their villages. If there are any differences they can be resolved through discussions and dialogues and through the existing democratic institutions. Diversity of culture, ethnicity and religions are a part of our composite culture and have contributed to the Indian identity. If the world is today enthusiastic in adopting Mahatma Gandhi's message of non-violence, we in his land of birth, have the first duty to abide by these principles. We must not allow incidents that occurred in some parts of the country to be repeated, as they are not the way of life as we in India know it and we must reject them.

I conclude by congratulating the Minister of Rural Development, Dr. Raghuvansh Prasad Singhji for his dedication to the cause of rural India and for providing dynamic leadership to this campaign. The honouring of Nirmal Gram Awardees marks a watershed in bringing sanitation to the forefront of our rural development. I would like to say to all the winners, that we are proud of your achievements to bring about cleanliness in your villages and to provide sanitation coverage to all. I convey my best wishes to all those present here.

Thank You,

Jai Hind