Union Rural Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister Jairam Ramesh today announced that his ministry will allocate one per cent of their budget for women welfare. The budget of the Rural Development Ministry is Rs 99,000 crore at present.

Ramesh was addressing a function in New Delhi on launch of Convergence Projects of National Mission for Empowerment of Women. He said that Naxal-affected areas should be given priority for empowering women.

The Minister further added that Kerala would become second state after Sikkim for containing open deification in the month of November this year in country. In March 2013, Himachal Pradesh will be the third. He said his ministry was offering Rs 10,000 per household for constructing toilets.

Under the Indira Awas Yojna, Ramesh said, his ministry would pay Rs 75,000 instead of Rs 45,000 for constructing houses. But second installment under this scheme will be released only after constructing a toilet in the house. An extra amount of Rs 9,000 for toilet will also be given.

Concerned over declining child sex ratio, Minister for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath said more awareness was required in that direction.