JOIN USIf you jog your memory, you will remember, that not very long ago, a bride refused to marry into a home without a toilet and a newly-wedded wife deserted her husband’s home which could not provide her toilet facility. Ever since, the advertisement made by the Government of India, which urges our rural population to build and use toilets, has gained visibility.
Government and non-governmental organisations have been working hard to make the vision a reality.
Closer home, Aa Foundation, a community-based organisation, has been working on this dream project for a couple of years now. Though the Aa Foundation has been following a thematic approach in creating a progressive atmosphere in the areas of education, health, water and sanitation, of late, its prime project happens to be building toilets for the homes in and around Malur taluk in Kolar district.
Varalakshmi, one of the founder members of Aa, has interacted extensively with people living in the rural areas of Karnataka. She has been actively involved in projects that are women-and child-centric. The foundation has been supporting the Araleri Panchayath to translate the agenda laid out by the government into concrete projects. In other words, they play the role of via media, by getting in touch with anganwadis, schools and communities at large. Their modus operandi is simple. The volunteers for the foundation are women from different villages of Malur, who want to work for the society.
Trustworthy
This approach is helpful in two ways. Primarily, the locals are comfortable in airing their concerns to someone they are familiar with. Secondly, the social worker usually understands the nature and intensity of the problem much more than a qualified outsider, who may not be able to empathise. For instance, when Kamalakshi, a youngster, offered to work for the foundation, she apparently did not qualify for the job, despite having completed her pre-university course with fairly good grades. She was told that her rejection would be revoked if she was able to get her family to build a toilet in her home in Chakanahalli. The young lady took it as a challenge and made it a point to get the job. Today, she has convinced people and is responsible for the construction of about 30 toilets in different villages.
Rathnamma, a young housewife in Upparalli, has felt extremely safe and hygienic ever since she had a toilet built in her house. Gone are the days when she and her friends would wait for the daylight to fade out before hitting the fields to relieve themselves. Then, there was always the fear of being bitten by snake or scorpion. Today, she is ready to take the responsibility to sensitise the women in her vicinity to play it safe by building a toilet.
The indigenous people of these villages belong to the Hakki Pikki tribe, who make their living by helping to clear out the roots of the Eucalyptus trees in plantations far and near. Their intrinsic nomadic nature makes them naturally defy ideas of civilisation. Aspects like
education, health or sanitation do not seem to figure in their scheme of things.
Need for change
Under such circumstances, it is but natural that they need to be educated and
exposed to the basic necessities of life. It is heartening to note that the teachers in the local schools and enterprising young women who have had the benefit of travelling and learning about the advantages of sanitation programmes are taking up the responsibility to spread the good word and are encouraging local women to realise the indignity and insecurity of
answering nature’s call in the open.
That is not all; the samaritans whose heart beats for the villages hope to introduce rainwater harvesting and encourage people to grow fruit-bearing trees around their homes which can ease their economy and environment in the fairly dry region. They say well begun is half done. If the development continues in the same pace, Malur will be a clean green, healthy and informed place, in a few years from now. For more details, log on to www.aafoundation.in.