Swachh Bharat Mission promotes hygiene leading to 53% rise in toilet cleaner usage

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Swachh Bharat Abhiyan or Clean India Mission has driven toilet cleaner usage in Indian households by 53 per cent in 2024, according to a report. The report by Kantar a market research firm showed that the country has seen a dramatic rise in the use of toilet cleaners and floor cleaners. From 19 per cent and 8 per cent respectively of households using these in 2014 it more than doubled to 53 per cent using toilet cleaners and 22 per cent buying floor cleaners in 2024. Launched by the government on October 2, 2014 the Swachh Bharat Mission is a country-wide campaign initiated to eliminate open defecation and improve solid waste management and to create Open Defecation Free (ODF) villages.

The report attributed the growth of toilet cleaner usage in households to the mission's success, coupled with marketing efforts. It said the mission significantly improved hygiene awareness and product penetration, particularly in rural areas. As per the report, over 128 million new households have been added in the toilet cleaners, and 52 million homes in the floor cleaners segment. The report said the surface cleaner market is about Rs 4,200 crore, with toilet cleaners accounting for half the segment at Rs 2,000 crore. Kantar said the category was largely urban-centric a decade ago -- that's changed drastically. A decade ago, 82 per cent of households that bought toilet cleaners were in urban areas, it was 90 per cent for floor cleaners. "Urban is no longer the dominant source of the category with rural contributing to 52 per cent," said K Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, world panel division at Kantar. "Clearly, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan drove the importance of cleanliness to the Indian households, and simultaneously helped manufacturers to drive penetration of household hygiene categories as well." Since its inception in 2014, the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan has led to over 500,000 villages achieving ODF (Open Defecation-Free) plus status with rural sanitation rising from 39 per cent to 100 per cent.