Silchar declared 'Open defecation free'; "it's a huge achievement," says Chairman Niharendra Narayan Tagore

The Silchar Municipality Board (SMB) has been officially declared as an ‘Open Defecation Free’ board. Which means the urban centre of Cachar district, Silchar now has no cases of defecation in the open air, under the blue sky. Assam’s Urban Development Minister, Pijush Hazarika has ceremoniously handed over the Swachhata Certificate to Board Chairman, Niharendra Narayan Tagore.

“This is a massive achievement” he reacts to the declaration. The chairman states that making Silchar an open defecation free city was a part of the Central Government’s Swachha Bharat Abhijaan (Mission) and he is of the opinion that the inclusion has played a major role in achieving the feat. “This means each and every house under Silchar Municipality Board has a toilet of their own. The other way to put it is, no resident living in Municipality area defecates under the sky in open,” he explains.

The minister of state in the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi, had earlier shed light on the process that the government follows while declaring a village, city open defecation free, he said, “In the first step, villages themselves declare ODF in the general meeting. Within 3 months of ODF declaration, State/UT conduct verification using a different process. ODF sustainability verification, which primarily focuses on toilet usage is also conducted after a period of 270 days.”