The government has asked the District Development Committee offices in Jhapa, Sunsari, Rautahat, Surkhet and Kanchanpur to allocate land for the implementation of the faecal sludge management project. 

Issuing a circular on Thursday, the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development stated the district authorities in respective districts to allocate land for the projects focusing on the management of faecal sludge currently being released directly from the septic tanks and toilets to improve the hygiene and sanitation in those areas. 

The government, with support from the Asian Development Bank, has been implementing the Small Towns Water Supply and Sanitation Project, where faecal sludge management has been incorporated as part of the sanitation activities. 

Project works are currently on at Charali in Jhapa; Mahendranagar in Sunsari; Kathariya in Rautahat; Babiachaur in Surkhet and Suda in Kanchanpur. 

The lack of land availability has been delaying the proper implementation of sanitation projects in the districts, according to authorities. “So, we expect the district authorities in coordination with the local communities to facilitate in identifying land for the project,” said Ram Chandra Sah, project coordinator. 

 According to the data from the Central Bureau of Statistics, only 30 percent of the urban households have toilets connected to an underground sewage network, while 48 percent are still connected with septic tanks, and the remaining practise open defecation in the country.