India to become 'open defecation free' by 2012 (Diversity Alert)

Daily India ^ | 3/27/06 | Mikey_1962

[Mikey_1962]

New Delhi, March 26 (IANS) Come 2012 and it will be rare to see people defecating in the open in India. So claims Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, who went on to say that the country was set to achieve 'open-defecation free' status under the government's Total Sanitation Programme (TSC).

'Open defecation is slowly losing popularity in rural India, and the government is doing all efforts to end this for all by 2012,' Singh told IANS.

The TSC was started in 1999 by the rural development ministry to ensure sanitation facilities across the country.

'The growth in the use of toilets from 22 percent in 2001 to 38 percent of the population in 2006 (till February) is an encouraging sign. The government has raised the grant for construction of household toilets from Rs.625 to Rs.1,500.

'While the central government would now bear 70 percent of the expenditure as against 60 percent earlier, the rest will be shared by the state government and the family,' he said, on the sidelines of a campaign on the need to wash hands.

The minister pointed out other issues related to defecation.

'In Haryana and Punjab people are not poor, what they lack is awareness. They have trucks, tractors and four-wheelers but no toilets - this is really surprising. However, states like Gujarat and Maharashtra are doing well,' he said.

Singh said that plans were afoot to extend the TSC to all districts of India by the end of 2007-08 financial year.

Speaking about other sanitation measures taken by his ministry, he said a water surveillance campaign worth Rs.2.68 billion had been launched to train five people in every panchayat (village clusters) to monitor water quality in villages.

'Currently 468 blocks in India have water surveillance laboratories. Under the new campaign, efforts would be made to extend the facility to every block.'

He said 216,000 village clusters were hit by the problem of poor quality water.

'We have reports of excessive fluoride, nitrate and presence of other chemicals in water. The authorities are working to provide quality water.'

[InterceptPoint]

Invest in American Standard.

[trebb]

it will be rare to see people defecating in the open in India

I guess they are going to profile the MSM and the Dims.

[Petronski]

I read this as:

"Soon our people will no longer crap in public. Give us six more years..."

[InterceptPoint]

That's a relief.

[adorno]

...the country was set to achieve 'open-defecation free' status under the government's Total Sanitation Programme

Total Sanitation Programme - changed from their original real choice for a name: Defecation Awareness Programme.

How would anybody like taking on the title of "Minister for Defecation Awareness"?

I imagine that now, all over India, signs will spring up with "Open-Defecation Free Zone". Wonder what the graphics on the sign would look like unter the circled-X.

Anyhow when in India, don't do as the Indians. And, watch your step!

[thoughtomator]

That's a great idea...

"For me to poop on!"

[kidd]

1 Billion Indians.
620 million will need toilets in 6 years.

Note to self: buy stock in American Standard

[colorado tanker]

I'm having trouble understanding why make fun of a poor country that's finally getting rich enough to adopt modern water quality and sanitation standards.

[Maximus of Texas]

Max's List of Public Poop Places:

1. Hillary's Porch
2. Alec Baldwin's Breakfast Table
3. India
4. 50 Yard Line at RFK Stadium
5. Toilets in Newly Constructed yet incompleted homes.

[adorno]

Envision seeing the hottest woman you could imagine slinking down the street in a breathtaking florescent sari, chatting on a cell phone while a disheveled guy with one arm and scabby legs taking a dump on the street in the foreground.

Then imagine that that same hot woman, squats right in front of your eyes, lifts her sari, and starts doing the same thing that the disheveled guy was doing! Would she be any less attractive afterwards?

[stuartcr]

At least we helped them with the nukes...nothing like a country that is unaware of the need for plumbing, but has the capability to incinerate anyone that pisses them off.

[roaddog727]

"You know its bad when you actually have to teach your citizens how to go to the bathroom."

No wonder Microsoft has pushed back the release of Vista - the Outsourced code-writers in India were outside too much taking a dump.

Sheesh...

[teenyelliott]

What about display toilets in do-it-yourself stores?

[Maximus of Texas]

"I'm having trouble understanding why make fun of a poor country..."

It's easier to do here on FR than calling them. Wait, never mind. Let me just call 1-800-HelpDesk.

[Maximus of Texas]

That's number 7 on my list and it's staying!

[tigtog]

I always prefer taking a dump on the Dallas Cowboy Star. If I remember correctly, the last time we saw Dallas the score was 35 to 7. Ouch.

[IamConservative]

Now if they can just keep the people from throwing the bodies of the dead in their drinking water....

Does open public defacation smell if nobody sees it?

[adorno]

Does open public defacation smell if nobody sees it?

No. But it will immediately after you step on it.

[Joe 6-pack]

"I'm having trouble understanding why make fun of a poor country that's finally getting rich enough to adopt modern water quality and sanitation standards."

I'd try to explain it to you, but I'm pooped right now.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Uh, HR, thanks for the ping, I think ;^)


Deceased Cambodian mass murderer Pol Potty had no comment.

So sad that the exterior filth is so endemic to that culture, as is the entrenched spiritual poverty under Hinduism. Christianity and Capitalism raise the standard of living wherever they are truly free to be applied together.