clean water and sanitation is a human right

UN General Assembly declares access to clean water and sanitation is a human right

UN News Service, 28 July 2010 - Safe and clean drinking water and sanitation is a human right essential to the full enjoyment of life and all other human rights, the General Assembly declared today, voicing deep concern that almost 900 million people worldwide do not have access to clean water.
The 192-member Assembly also called on United Nations Member States and international organizations to offer funding, technology and other resources to help poorer countries scale up their efforts to provide clean, accessible and affordable drinking water and sanitation for everyone.
The Assembly resolution received 122 votes in favour and zero votes against, while 41 countries abstained from voting.
The text of the resolution expresses deep concern that an estimated 884 million people lack access to safe drinking water and a total of more than 2.6 billion people do not have access to basic sanitation. Studies also indicate about 1.5 million children under the age of five die each year and 443 million school days are lost because of water- and sanitation-related diseases.
Today’s resolution also welcomes the UN Human Rights Council’s request that Catarina de Albuquerque, the UN Independent Expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation, report annually to the General Assembly as well.
Ms. de Albuquerque’s report will focus on the principal challenges to achieving the right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation, as well as on progress towards the relevant Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The MDGs, a series of targets for reducing social and economic ills, all by 2015, includes the goals of halving the proportion of people who cannot reach or afford safe drinking water and halving the number who do not have basic sanitation.

Friends
Its really interesting to know that UN is taking as serious issue to provide safe water and sanitation to each citizen of world. The India, even after 60 years of independence, we could not able to provide safe drinking water and basic sanitation to our Country brother and sisters. Its really same on our capability. Few day ago I read comment in news that somebody from UN said that there are more numbers of mobile phones in India compare to latrines. I is true and its really same on us. Even today you will get people who are doing open air defecation with mobile in their hand. You will get Mineral water bottle (misnomer actually we should say de-mineralized water) and cold drink in any corner of country but you will not get simple safe water. You will find the person who is selling such items will don’t have safe water. People still walking long distance to get water (don’t know how safe for drinking?). Forget about remote areas even in cities and town places we are not getting safe water. See the IDSP (integrated disease surveillance programme) web page www.idsp.nic.in for recent epidemic. There are large places in country where various water born disease epidemics are going on like cholera, acute gestro enteritis and other. Gujarat where I am living, there are scattered cases of cholera in various cities, towns, villages and in tribal areas. What dose this show? Its simple we failed to provide the safe drinking water and our poor sanitation system.
I like to open small discussion here with one opinion poll. Please participate in discussion and in poll. Poll is in side box and question is that do you using any type of filtration method for your home drinking water supply? Yes/ No. If yes please write in comment which filtration instrument are you using? Company name and type of filtration method.
Discussion issue is that what can we do for the improvement in safe water supply and sanitation?
Waiting for your comments
Niraj