Naringana GP to be free from open defecation by Oct 2

21,673 houses in DK dist do not have toilets, says surveyc

The Naringana Gram Panchayat in association with Jana Shikshana Trust will try to create an awareness on the need for using toilets and total sanitation and ill effects of the use of plastics. To continue the total sanitation campaign and proper waste disposal at the Gram Panchayats, use of toilets by every households, anganwadi centres and schools, a cleanliness programme will be started.

At a time when all the 203 Gram Panchayats had won the Nirmal Gram Puraskar award for sanitation, the survey report on the sanitation drive came as a shock because it revealed that as many as 21,673 houses did not have toilets in the district. This made the Jana Shikshana Trust to think of a movement to continue the sanitation drive in all the gram panchayats in the district.

Trust Director Krishna Moolya said that Dakshina Kannada district was given 30 per cent target to complete because of the hygiene culture that already existed in the district.

“If we could not meet this target, then it makes us to think over the plight of the campaign in those districts which had 70 per cent target to meet,” he said and added that it is not just ‘no toilets,’ but during the survey, the categories like toilets ‘worth using’ and ‘not worth using’ have also come to light.

Trust Director Sheena Shetty said a drive to continue total sanitation programme will be taken up in Balepuni, Manchi and Ira gram panchayats with the help of the gram panchayat members, officials, ASHA workers and various organisations in the gram panchayat level.

“In Naringana, a person has come forward to collect used plastics including the gutka packets. He is ready to pay Rs 2.50 per kg of plastics. The Gram Panchayat in association with the Jana Shikshana Trust will organise an awareness programme for students and parents on total sanitation, the use of toilets and ill effects of plastics on Monday. The members will visit all the 10 anganwadi centres and six schools in the Gram Panchayat limits,” he said.

A drive to collect plastic will be held on August 11 wherein the people will come forward and collect the plastics from schools, anganwadi centres, houses and the collected plastics will be sold by the Gram Panchayat. To create an awareness among the mass, all the plastics  which are thrown on roads will be picked and bunting of plastics will be tied on every road to create an awareness among the people on August 15.  The cleanliess convention and MGNREGS special meet will be held at Naringana on October 2, where in the Gram Panchayat President will make an announcement against open defecation, Shetty said.

The Gram Panchayat members had visited Hosangady and Kashipattana Gram Panchayats, which have made name in total sanitation and MGNREGS work recently.
Naringana Gram Panchayat President Ismail said: “We had received Nirmal Gram Puraskar. When we received the award, all the houses in the Gram Panchayat limits had toilets. However, over the years, we found that the new houses which were constructed recently did not have toilets. When Angangawdi workers conducted a survey,we came to know that seven houses do not have toilets. Of which, toilets have been constructed for five houses and the construction of two toilets are under progress. We want to continue the cleanliness drive in the gram panchayat.”

He said: “We have constituted teams who visit houses in the jurisdiction of the gram panchayat to create an awareness on the ill effects of the use of toilets on every Tuesday afternoon.”