Making Cities Open Defecation Free (ODF) in Class ‘A’ Municipal Councils in Maharashtra
May 2013
This summary presentation assesses the existing situation in the 15 Class ‘A’ cities in Maharashtra with respect to access to individual and community sanitation facilities. It provides a roadmap to make all Class ‘A’ cities in Maharashtra Open Defecation Free (ODF).
The Government of Maharashtra (GoM) focuses on two areas of improvement in urban water supply and sanitation (UWSS): 24x7 Water Supply System and Open Defecation Free cities. The GoM requested Performance Assessment System (PAS) Project to prepare Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) with the focus on implementing 24x7 water supply and attaining ODF status in 15 Class ‘A’ cities of Maharashtra. The support for preparing PIPs began in mid-2011 and included initial performance assessment using three years PAS data, data collection and field visits to cities, discussions with chief officer (CO), municipal staff and consultations with sector experts. The plans received guidance from GoM and drew from priorities shared by the city managers, political representatives, technical staff and citizen representatives across the 15 cities.