Small Steps Can Change the World

beti hi bachayegi-3

Shimla, barely four kilometres from the annexe, a 52 year old government primary school (read temple of education) was doing without a toilet. Amar Ujala wrote a hard hitting piece targeting government ineptitude and lackadaisical approach towards this sensitive issue. The article worked in favour of the girls. Sometimes simple actions are all it takes to make a difference and change the world.

 

By Daya Shankar Shukla Sagar

December/ 2014 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asserted that a toilet is more important than a temple. But in Shimla, barely four kilometres from the annexe, a 52 year old government primary school (read temple of education) was doing without a toilet. Here, 78 girls and 49 boys were being imparted education at the cost of daily dose of humiliation which came with nature's call.

Expectedly, the problem was more serious for girls than boys as it put their safety at stake. While the boys looked for corners along the road sides, girls were forced to go 500 meters away towards the jungle. Anywhere in the world, shame is one of the first things an individual is taught. This everyday humiliation often forced the girls to skip schools especially during their menstrual cycles and some of them in fact dropped out.

We at Amar Ujala brought the matter in public domain on September 20 because the school in Sanjauli spoke for problem faced by thousands of girls across 1500 schools in the state. The issue which is deeply associated with the dignity of girls was very sensitively handled and taken to its conclusion. The next day, state government was forced to acknowledge the problem and chief minister Veer Bhadra Singh promised to get the toilets constructed.

But acknowledgement is no guarantee to real action in a government system. On October 15, three weeks after the first report, we revisited the place only to find that nothing has changed on ground zero. The status check compelled parents of the children studying in these schools to join the movement. On October 19, many of them said that they would withdraw their wards from the schools if the toilets were not made. The pressure resulted in release of Rs 1.5 lakh for the purpose on October 20.

IMPACT : The sanction however did not led to beginning of the construction over the next one month. So on Novemeber 19, observed as world toilet day, we wrote a hard hitting piece targeting government ineptitude and lackadaisical approach towards this sensitive issue. The article worked in favour of the girls and on December 1st, construction of the toilet started and it will be ready for use when the girls return to school after vacations in March 2015. The best part is that this is just the beginning as the government has plans to construct toilets in
all schools.