`Wasn't easy to convince people to build, use toilets'

KANPUR: For Akash Verma, the village head of Ishwariganj, stopping villagers from defecating in the open and convincing them to build toilets was not an easy task. The collective efforts, which started in 2013, led to construction of 350 toilets and the village was declared open defecation-free (ODF) in 2016.
The village head and six other members of ODF team would be felicitated at the launch of `Swachhta Hi Sewa' campaign by President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday .
Verma, Raj Rani, Ram Bali, Puja Gautam, Babli Gautam, all members of ODF awareness team and sanitary worker Vinod Singh and village development officer Rakesh Jha will be felicitated by the President.
Verma had formed groups of men and women and started awareness campaign in Ishwariganj and adjoining hamlets Prithviganj and Khushalganj. They resorted to various means, including Gandhigiri during field visits.“The villagers going out in the fields for defecation were intercepted and we either blew a whistle or sometimes greet them with roses. We used to get up early and make surprise visits, right from the fields to the ponds. Initially , there was repercussion but within a fortnight our efforts started bearing fruit,“ Jha said.
A resource group was formed under Swachh Bharat Mission. The group trained self-help groups, religious representatives, teachers and panchayat members on how to make the village open defecation-free. Chief development officer Arun Kumar said the campaign had changed the mindset of people and they built toilets in their homes.
Ishwariganj, which has a population of 1,957, has turned into a defecation-free area and each household has a toilet. For 40-year old Raj Rani, the felicitation doesn't matter as much as the feeling of satisfaction that her village is ODF.
“In our village, women and children had to defecate in the open surrounded by jungles which was very unsafe. I decided to take it upon myself the task of digging pits for toilets. I was helped by my family first and then other villagers and local administration. This led to the beginning of the mission of constructing toilets in our village,“ she said.