Dhanbad, Nov 3 (IANS): Staying true to the vision and mission of PM Narendra Modi-led Central government in making the nation Open Defecation Free (ODF) plus by 2025 under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase II, nearly all villages in Baliapur block in Dhanbad district of Jharkhand have been declared ODF for which the village locals have expressed gratitude towards the Prime Minister.

Lalchand, a resident of a village in the Baliapur block, said, "Under the Swacch Bharat Mission scheme launched by the Central government, all the people in our village have benefitted from the construction of toilets. When we did not have toilet facilities, we used to venture outside in the fields to defecate. Now no individual in our village goes for open defecation. Earlier diseases used to spread due to defecating outside our houses. PM Modi's government has brought a transformational change in the living standards of the people by building toilets. It is a good initiative by the Modi government to provide toilets to every person. On behalf of my villagers, I want to express my gratitude to PM Modi."\

A woman resident from the village says that earlier she used to go outside to defecate in the open ground of the village, but after a toilet was built in her village, she stopped going outside to defecate.

She further said, "Now we only use toilets to defecate. PM Modi has shown immense care for the poor people. He has worked to fulfill the basic needs of our people. I thank PM Modi for this initiative."

Another woman from the village said, "We have become very comfortable after the construction of toilets. Earlier we were forced to defecate in the open, but now we do not go out. I thank PM Modi for this huge step."

The country has achieved yet another major milestone under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase II with three-fourths of the total villages in the country that is, 75 per cent of villages achieving open defecation-free (ODF) Plus status. This target has been achieved well before its stipulated time by PM Modi's government.

An ODF Plus village has sustained its ODF status by implementing either solid or liquid waste management systems. As of date, more than 4.43 lakh villages have declared themselves ODF Plus, which is a significant step towards achieving the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase-II goals by 2024-25.