Much has been written about Swachh Bharat since its launch in 2014. Advocates of the scheme rightly point to the number of toilets constructed and the number of villages that are declared open defecation free— over 8 crore toilets and 5 lakh villages respectively—whereas critics point to the low usage of the toilets constructed and question the truth behind open defecation free claims.

The effect of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan:

• The 2017 Swachh Survekshan survey conducted by the Quality Council of India reports that 62% of rural households now have a toilet.This is an increase of over 20 percentage points since 2014
• More importantly, the survey concludes that more than 90% of the individuals who had access to toilets were using them. This points out to the success of behavioural change component of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
• Women empowerment: Jharkhand, State’s introduced a program “Rani Mistris” who are breaking gender norms and getting into the usually male-dominated domain of working as masons for construction of toilets.
• Till now over 19 States and UTs declared open defecation free.

Yet, stories continue to pour in, suggesting that the ground reality isn’t so rosy. Some common problems with Swachh Bharat Abhiyan are:

Policymakers hoped that once enough toilets were built to declare India open defecation free, it would continue to remain so. This failed to take into account that, unlike eradicating smallpox or polio, eliminating open defecation isn’t a one-off.
The lengthy queues, lack of water supply and the poor communication in remote and tribal populations have all resulted in low uptake in areas where it is needed the most.
The most pertinent question is what will happen when Swachh Bharat Mission ends in 2019. Will people continue to use these toilets or they will go back to fields when there will be no constant awareness programmes.

To address the above issues there is need to adopt some innovative measures. Some of which are suggested below:

• To truly make India open defecation free requires a sustainable change in societal mindset and behaviour.
• One way to bring about behavioural change is to focus on spreading rational knowledge (germ theory), having explicit action plans (such as personal and political commitments to change) and using human emotions of pride and shame to change behaviour.
• Community led Total Sanitation (CLTS) programmes is one such approach.It promotes the mobilisation of local communities to talk openly about, appraise and analyse their defecation practices.
• Triggers, both psychological and visual, can be used to shock and disgust people in an effort to move away from practices of open defecation. Maharashtra with its adoption of the ‘Good Morning Squads’, Indore with its ‘dibba gang’ and Delhi with its Gabbar posters, are all using System to trigger behavioural change.
• Strategic timing of key interventions can also go a long way in disrupting behaviour. For example, promoting the use of toilets during the monsoon, when people find it difficult to defecate openly, or launching new interventions during the outbreak of a disease, when people are actively thinking about hygiene, are ways to ensure a new behaviour is developed.
• Initiatives creating an annual ritual, aligned with prevalent religious beliefs, when a village is declared open defecation free can ensure change is celebrated and thus, sustained in the long run.

For India to permanently eradicate open defecation, the Swachh Bharat Mission must adopt three pillars of support. The first must provide and maintain the infrastructure needed to aid toilet use. The second must motivate people to change behaviour towards toilet use and the third must harness cues and automatic habits to drive positive behaviour. It’s time policymakers start focusing on the third pillar, before the facade wobbles.