UN report says 50 million Indian schoolchildren lack sanitation access
A United Nations report says five crore children in India still lack access to sanitation services at their schools. The report also places India among 28 of 62 countries on track to achieve universal basic drinking-water coverage in schools by 2030, highlighting differing progress across school water and sanitation services.
Five crore children in India still lack access to sanitation services in their schools, according to a United Nations report cited by The Hindu. The figure indicates that a substantial number of Indian schoolchildren remain without the sanitation service covered by the report. The available material does not specify whether the figure refers to children lacking toilets, wider sanitation facilities or another defined category of service.
The report also says India is among 28 of 62 countries that are on track to achieve universal coverage of basic drinking water in schools by 2030. That assessment concerns drinking-water access and is separate from the reported shortfall in sanitation services. The two findings present different measures of school infrastructure.
India’s inclusion among countries considered on track for universal basic drinking-water coverage does not mean that all school sanitation needs have been met. The report’s figures instead indicate progress on one service alongside continuing gaps in another. The supplied material does not give the report’s publication date, the definition of “five crore,” the number of schools affected or the proportion of Indian schools without sanitation.
It also does not identify the measures being taken to close the gap. The Hindu reported the findings from the United Nations report without providing further detail in the available material.
This independently written report is based on information supplied by the named publisher. Vertrix News has not independently verified the source report.