63.8 crore people in India practice Open Defecation due to Inadequate Sanitation

UNICEF in its finding for the year 2008 estimated that as many as 63.8 crore people In India practice open defecation due to inadequate sanitation. India accounts for 58 percent of those who practice open defecation across the globe.

UNICEF estimated that as many as 63.8 crore people, that is, 54 percent of the country's population, practice open defecation due to inadequate sanitation. Only five states in India - Kerala, Sikkim, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra - are doing well in sanitation. Uttar Pradesh alone accounts for 10 percent of population that suffers on account of inadequate sanitation.

Indonesia is a placed second in the list with 5.7 crore people lacking toilet facilities, and it accounts for 5 percent of the population which still are denied sanitation. China where 5.6 crore people have no other option but to defecate in the open comes third.

Ethiopia's condition is worse than India's - 60 percent of its population are put to discomfiture against the 54 percent in India. Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka are also ranked in the list for poor sanitation, however they are still are better off than India in providing sanitation to their population.

The economic impact of inadequate sanitation costs India about Rs. 2.4 trillion or about 6.4 per of its gross domestic product. Diarrhoea alone claims four lakh lives annually, of which 90 percent are children.

Even though the dismal condition exists, the annual central budget is just Rs. 2000 crore which is just about two percent of the entire budget for Rural Development which is close to Rs.1 lakh crore.