Call Swachh Bharat toilets ‘Izzat Ghar’: Centre to states

NEW DELHI: Every toilet constructed across the country under the Swachh Bharat Mission could now be called ‘Izzat Ghar’, or something equivalent in a local language that means house of dignity, following a directive from the Centre to the states after Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month applauded the naming of a newly-constructed toilet in his constituency, Varanasi, as ‘Izzat Ghar’.

The Centre wrote to all states on October 16 in this regard, advising Hindi-speaking states to call a toilet an ‘Izzat Ghar’ while urging other states to come up with other terms in the regional languages with the same meaning.

“It has come to the notice of the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation that toilets in many parts of Uttar Pradesh are being named ‘Izzat Ghar’. This is a good practice that instils a sense of dignity and pride in the entire family for their toilet, and will also have a positive impact on usage… it is recommended that this practice could be considered for replication in other parts of India,” the advisory said.


The PM had visited Varanasi in September and inaugurated a newly-constructed toilet there.

He had applauded the Yogi Adityanath government for naming toilets as ‘Izzat Ghar’, saying that if a house will have ‘Izzat Ghar’, it would upkeep the dignity of the house.

“When I was laying foundation stone of toilets at village, I saw ‘Izzat Ghar’ written on them. I was happy to see the name. I congratulate the state government for coining this name,” Modi had said at the time in Varanasi.

The Centre in its advisory said that all states are encouraged to initiate similar local initiatives and good practices that associate a sense of dignity and pride among the households with having and using toilets.