The World Bank has withdrawn 3 working papers citing technical issues amid alleged governmental pressure.

The paper titled "Progress on Sanitation in Rural India: Reconciling Diverse Evidence", highlighted that though Swachh Bharat Mission - Gramin (SBM-G) led to improved toilet access, toilet usage has been declining in rural India since 2018.

SBM-G caused a substantial increase in rural toilet access - from 38% in 2012 to 90% in 2019-20.

This study combined data from the National Family Health Survey, the National Sample Surveys, the National Annual Rural Sanitation Survey and the SBM-G’s Information System.

Other papers that were taken down were: “What Lies Beneath? An Assessment of India’s Groundwater Quality And Monitoring Systems” and “Lifting the lid: Process and Delivery of the Swachh Bharat Mission”.