Men in Phoolpur village of Varanasi’s Pindra gram sabha have decided to construct toilets for their sisters on the occasion of Rakshabandhan this year. The toilets are being built as part of the Swachhata Bandan and Bhai No 1 campaigns launched by the district, The Times of India reported. As part of the campaign, rallies are being organised in villages of all eight blocks of the district.
Several residents have begun construction of toilets despite financial constraints, a chief development officer told TOI. After the construction cases are verified by village secretaries and the ADO panchayat, they will be compiled for the Bhai No 1 contest.
A resident, Dilip, told the daily:
I arranged Rs 15,000 to construct the toilet. This amount is big for people like me, but I made up my mind to gift a toilet to my sister.
In addition to this, several district officials have adopted women as their sisters to gift toilets to them. District Magistrate Yogeshwar Ram Mishra has adopted a differently-abled couple, Santoshi Devi and her husband, in order to build the family a toilet.
The chief development officer of the district Sunil Kumar Verma, told TOI that they aim to construct 1.83 lakh toilets by 31 December. “Two months ago, the rate of toilet construction was 47 per day. Now, after constant monitoring, it has increased to 418 per day in the last six days. If we maintain this progress next week as well, Varanasi will be among the leaders in rate of toilet construction in Uttar Pradesh,” he told the daily.
(With inputs from The Times of India.)
(We all love to express ourselves, but how often do we do it in our mother tongue? Here's your chance! This Independence Day, khul ke bol with BOL – Love your Bhasha. Sing, write, perform, spew poetry – whatever you like – in your mother tongue. Send us your BOL at bol@thequint.com or WhatsApp it to 9910181818.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)