23 Feb YOUNG MINDS IGNITE HOPE

Nine-year-old Jasjit in Mahduda village had never felt odd in wandering to the village fields when pressed to answer the nature’s call.  His parents had taught him so. This was before a motivator came to his classroom and talked about the shame in defecating in the open and its ill effects. Realizations dawned in his young mind and suddenly getting naked in full public view made him feel ashamed and undignified. He was filled with joy when he learnt about the government scheme to make toilets for people as he knew his financially constrained parents will not spare money to make a toilet. Resolved, he went home and explained to his mother why everyone in the family was falling ill so often, as the kitchen was full of flies. It took him some time to convince his parents shed their indifference to hygiene and embrace cleanliness, but he was determined. Constant efforts bore fruit and his insistent demand compelled his parents to consider making a toilet in their home. Aided by government, the family now enjoys the privacy of a toilet in their home and no longer has to look for a place in the fields, away from prying eyes, to relieve their stomach.