The temple city of Pandharpur in Maharashtra's Solapur district is
popularly known as the abode of Vitthal, the seventh avatar of Lord Krishna.
This small town,
having a population of approximately 1.5 million, attracts tourists and Hindu
devotees from all over the country during the major Yatra in the month of
Ashadh (June-July).
However, this town
like many other places of the nation was suffering from the curse of open
defecation. To add to this, the menace of manual scavenging had spoiled the
beauty of this religious town.
However, with Prime
Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat' campaign, things have changed
drastically. Taking forward the Prime Minister's ambitious 'Clean India'
campaign, Sulabh International has not only tried to remove the problem of open
defecation but has also brought a 'healthy and hygienic' smile on the face of
the people here.
Situated on the banks
of the Bhima river, this town will very soon have the world's biggest toilet
facility to cater to the everyday needs of the pilgrims, who throng to this
place to seek blessings of the local presiding deities.
The NGO has
constructed a cluster of eight mega toilet complexes comprising of at least
1,417 toilet units in the temple's vicinity and with the opening of 15 more
complexes, total 2,858 toilet units would be constructed here.
Earlier, the Chinese
city of Chongqing held the record for the same, with around 1,000 toilet units.
Naveen Kumar Jha, a
worker at one of the Sulabh toilet complexes located in the vicinity of the
Vitthal Temple, said these toilet complexes have completely changed the
scenario of the town.
"The place where
this toilet complex is built used to be a barren land with locals and pilgrims
defecating in open, thus inviting many vector-borne diseases," he told ANI.
He also said there is
a monthly pass system, which can be used by the local residents.
"The locals of
this place are provided a monthly pass of Rs. 10. In that pass, all the members
of a particular family can use the facilities here for a month. Till now, there
are around 800 families which are using this pass," he said with a feeling
of satisfaction in his eyes.
Naveen, who hails
from a village near Samastipur district in Bihar, asserted that he had been
working with the NGO from the last 15 years and feels very happy to do social
service and help the people.
Ayub Younis, one of
the locals, narrated about the ordeal that they had to witness when there were
no such complexes.
"We were forced
to defecate in open as there were no toilets. Even the pilgrims, who used to
come for the Yatra, used to defecate in open. As a result, this beautiful town
was losing its charm," he said.
"However, now
the situation has completely changed. With proper sanitation facilities, not
only the locals are benefitted but also the 'warkaries' (pilgrims). The tourism
has increased significantly with the building of toilet complexes," he
added.
One of the local
females said the construction of Sulabh toilet complexes has now given them a
sense of pride and respect.
Bindeshwar Pathak,
the founder of the Sulabh International, feels satisfied that the initiative on
which he has been working on since 1968 is now paying off.
"Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has started a very good initiative. It is because of his
initiative that now even children are forcing their parents in their villages
and towns to built toilets in their houses," he said.
He feels that his
organization is working as a bridge between Mahatma Gandhi and Prime Minister
Modi.
"Sulabh is
working as a setu (bridge) between Mahatma Gandhi and Prime Minister Modi. As
Lord Rama required the setu to reach Lanka and kill Ravan, the same way Sulabh
is working as a bridge to kill Ravan of open defecation," he added.
Pathak believes that
the menace of open defecation could be removed only when there are toilets.
"If there are no
toilets, where will they defecate? All public places, restaurants, houses, etc
should have toilets," he said.
"There has been
a 5,000-year-old tradition where it was said that toilets should not be built
inside the houses. So, it's not only about practice, it's about culture and
culture takes time to change. Just building toilets is not going to solve the
problems because open defecation is a practice acquired from the time we learn
how to walk. When we grow up in such an environment, how will we be able to get
ourselves detached from it?" he added.
According to a new
World Health Organisation (WHO) report, even today more than half a billion
people in our nation still 'continue to defecate in gutters, behind bushes or
in open water bodies, with no dignity and privacy.'
The Sulabh founder
believes that funds would be needed and nearly 12 crore toilets are required to
be built by 2019 to make India open defecation free by that period as has been
visualized by Prime Minister Modi.
Representative
Image
Source: ANI by Aakash Kumar
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