Peer group pressure is new Mantra for OD free rural areas in MP

While male family members are encouraged to build toilets, the state uses kids and announcement system to shame open defecators

Despite the accolades Prime Minister Narendra Modi showered on Harda district, Damoh town, which is located there, figured at the bottom of the list of cleanest cities inn India released by Ministry of Urban Development. The locals took that to mean it was the dirtiest and observed two minutes of silence in protest.

Last month, while addressing the nation on All India Radio, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Harda's initiative, Operation Mallyudh (Combating Open Defecation), under the Swachh Bharat Mission, along with another peer pressure tactic, the 'Brother Number One' campaign.

The initiative by district officials apparently found favour with the Prime Minister, who had said that the Clean India campaign had a fresh dimension with 'Brother Number One. The campaign was launched in view of forthcoming Rakshabandhan, to encourage brothers to fund toilets in the houses of their sisters as a gift, so that they could avoid going out in the open to relieve themselves. The brothers were also urged to take a selfie with their sisters and with newly constructed toilets, in order to get Rs 12,000 government subsidy instantly.

"We will launch 'Pati Number One' during Karwa Chouth, so that husbands can go for construction of toilets at their houses to support Swachh Bharat Mission. Later, a similar campaign will be launched during 'Shradh or Pitra Paksh' to urge people not to contaminate water bodies and offer pure waters to their ancestors," Hemwati Barman, State Programme Officer, Rajya Jal and Swachhta Mission und Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) told Business Standard.

In Betul district, officials have launched an interesting drive where people in local community inform a particular "broadcaster" if they spot any person defecating in the open intentionally.

"They do a live broadcast of the person on megaphone to embarrass him," she said. Chhindwara district administration has also put similar peer group pressure tactics by forming a group of children. "These children are known as Bal Commandoes who whistle when someone who has toilets at home but still defecates in the open," said Sudhir Krishak district coordinator for Swachh Bharat Mission.

Chhindwara was recently ranked 54th among the cleanest towns of India and topped Madhya Pradesh.

Madhya Pradesh, which requires as much as Rs 10,000 crore to construct nine million toilets at Rs 12,000 each, has adopted peer group pressure as new mantra to speed up the Swachh Bharat Mission. It has joined hands with Feedback Foundation and Unicef to train its officials to motivate community so that cleanliness, particularly getting rid of open defecation remains sustainable.

"If government officials conclude the mission with construction of toilets only, the cleanliness drive cannot be sustainable. Each district has to have a peer group that can encourage the community to give up the habit of open defecation and maintain cleanliness by use of toilets in rural areas," said Ajay Sinha, chief executive officer of Feedback Foundation. The Feedback Foundation in association with Unicef is running training programmes to government officials in various states.

"In fact, open defecation is a mentality rather a disease. States like Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh have attained almost cent percent success in making villages open defecation free, why can't Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh or Bihar do it by encouraging the community?" asks Sinha.

As many as 22,813 gram panchayats need to be free from open defecation in Madhya Pradesh, but at the current pace only 2,900 have gotten rid of the social problem. "So far the state has 2,900 OD-free gram panchayats and our target is to make all villages OD-free by 2018," Barman further said. Interestingly Bhopal, where the entire government machinery functions, funds and monitors the activities, has only two blocks that cover rural areas. "These two blocks will be free from open defecation by 2018," a government official associated with the mission said.