“King of Bollywood” Shahrukh Khan puts his star-power behind life-saving sanitation and hygiene work

First major movie star to talk about importance of toilets for dignity and health

Mumbai, 10 October 2011 – Shahrukh Khan, one of the world’s most popular and much-loved Bollywood personalities, is making the fight for the right to safe sanitation and good hygiene his own.  The announcement was made last night at the start of the Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene, an international conference taking place this week in Mumbai.

“I am very happy to be an advocate for these important issues, because I believe in every human being’s right to live with dignity,” Shahrukh Khan said. “It is shameful and tragic that every 30 seconds a child dies from preventable diarrhoea -- that’s two unnecessary child deaths per minute, almost 3,000 a day or 1 million young lives wasted each year.”

Mr. Khan said he dreams of an India and a world where poor and vulnerable people don’t have to squat in the street or in the bushes to meet Nature’s call.  “It’s really quite simple. Toilets for all will make India and the world a healthier and cleaner place, particularly for poor women, girls and others at the margins of our societies,” Mr. Khan said, adding “Sanitation for all does not require huge sums of money or breakthrough scientific discoveries. Political commitment at the highest level, the need to create awareness, and meet the demand for sanitation, are all challenging issues, but doable.”

Jon Lane, executive director for the UN-hosted Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC), which asked Mr. Khan to serve in the role of ambassador, says the actor’s support for the issues is greatly welcomed. “Mr. Khan is highly regarded by billions of people in South Asia and Africa, where most of the people without good sanitation and hygiene services live,” Mr. Lane said. “By extending his support to water, sanitation and hygiene issues, Mr. Khan will give a huge impetus to moving the agenda forward of ensuring there is a toilet in every home and proper hand-washing practices are followed by all in the region.”

In the coming months, Mr. Khan will advocate with the public about the impact toilets and proper handwashing on their lives by highlighting the strong linkages it has on their health and the environment around them including their ground water sources. (Click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMWnoH2Mxc8 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Uz4THb8PFA to view his first public service announcements.)

Experts meeting in Mumbai
Some 500 activists, business leaders, health professionals, governmental officials and others from 70 countries are attending the first-ever Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene (www.wsscc-global-forum.org) in Mumbai. Arranged 9-14 October by the Geneva-based WSSCC and the Governments of India and Maharashtra, the Forum aims to highlight how to save millions of lives through handwashing, how to build educational opportunities for teenage girls through separate latrines, and how to “invest in waste” through biogas-generating toilets and other entrepreneurial innovation.

Of the 2.6 billion people living without safe and clean toilets, roughly a third live in South Asia, a third in sub-Saharan Africa and a third in China. These people are unable to fulfil their daily needs with safety, convenience and dignity. There are good reasons to turn this situation around, including evidence that points to the negative economic impacts of poor sanitation.

“Poor sanitation is costing developing countries between 3 and 7% of GDP,” said Anna Tibaijuka,  chair of WSSCC. “Improved access to toilets has the potential to reduce healthcare costs, improve productivity, increase earnings from tourism and promote greater educational attainment, especially among girls. When a school has separate toilets for girls, with doors that lock, their attendance rates improve, especially once they reach menstruation.”

About the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council
The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council's (WSSCC) mission is to ensure sustainable sanitation, better hygiene and safe drinking water for all people.  Good sanitation and hygiene lead to economic and social development, yielding health, productivity, educational and environmental benefits. WSSCC manages the Global Sanitation Fund, facilitates coordination at national, regional and global levels, supports professional development, and advocates on behalf of the 2.6 billion people without a clean, safe toilet to use.  WSSCC is hosted by UNOPS, supports coalitions in more than 30 countries, and has members around the world.

 

Rural sanitation: Bill Gates Foundation team visits Mandi

Express news service
Posted: Oct 24, 2007 at 0000 hrs IST

Shimla, October 23 Mandi’s success in the community-led rural sanitation drive has started attracting international agencies, who are offering to replicate the experiment in other countries, besides Indian states. More than 150 gram panchayats in the district have already attained status of ODF (open defecation free ) - one of the basic pre-requisite of total sanitation.The district has set a target of becoming completely ODF by August 2008, perhaps the first in northern India.

Yesterday, a 10-member team from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USA, visited two gram panchayats of Mandal and Barsu in Balh Block to see how the community has collectively made a change in their living standards.The team was accompanied by officials of the World Bank, whose water and sanitation programme (WSP) is also actively associated with the drive.

Paitty Stonesifer, the foundation’s CEO, led the team and met local community leaders and members of mahila mandals to share their experiences. “What actually impressed the foundation’s CEO was the fact that the campaign is completely led by the community and involves no element of subsidy or funding,” said Subhasish Panda, Mandi’s Deputy Commissioner.

Though the foundation, which works on health issues, has earlier also visited Orissa and Maharashtra, this is the first time the CEO headed for Himachal Pradesh. Some of the local natural water sources maintained by the villagers were also visited by the team leader.

Next, a team of Pakistan’s media professionals is also reaching Shimla to collect first-hand experience on working of the rural sanitation campaign in the district. Narkanda block in Shimla with 16 panchayats has also recently become ODF. In all, 360 gram panchayats have already become ODF in the state, barring districts of Kangra, Una and Hamirpur, where the campaign has not yet taken up well.

Strikingly, Kinnaur district in the state’s tribal belt has shown change faster than even some of the bigger districts like Kangra. Now, Bilaspur, Shimla and Solan districts are also witnessing a change, says Director, Rural Development and Panchayats, Rakesh Kaushal.

“Our focus is to see a collective behaviour change in the rural community. Once that’s achieved, the people will start realising the advantages,” he feels.

In Solan, the district plan prescribes for regular monitoring of the water quality in and around the panchayats that have become ODF.

“This is a very good test to monitor community behavior and also prevent re-occurrence of diseases like diarrhoea and gastroenteritis,” said Deepak Shanan, principal secretary, IPH. Shanan says the department is already working on a plan to introduce internal water quality monitoring system for drinking water supply schemes in the state.

Sanitary napkins for rural girls from August

Aarti Dhar

Napkins will be sold at subsidised price of Rs. 6 per pack

Ensuring better menstrual health and hygiene

Safe disposal of napkins at community level

NEW DELHI: The Centre's ambitious and much-awaited scheme of making available subsidised sanitary napkins to adolescent girls in the age group of 10-19 years in rural India will be operational by August.

As part of promotion of menstrual hygiene, the napkins will be sold to girls at a cost of Rs.6 for a pack of six - Re. 1 per piece - in the village by the Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA).

This scheme is aimed at ensuring that adolescent girls in rural areas have adequate knowledge and information about menstrual hygiene and the use of napkins. The girls will be provided a pack of six napkins under the National Rural Health Mission's brand ‘Freedays.'

Use to increase

In the first phase, the scheme will cover 25 per cent of the population — 1.5 crore girls in 152 districts of 20 States. It is expected that with availability of sanitary napkins at the village level, their use will increase. Easy access and convenient pricing are the strategies adopted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for increasing usage of safe and hygienic practices during menstruation.

The ASHA will get an incentive of Re. 1 on sale of each pack, besides a free pack of napkins every month.

Evidence suggests that lack of access to menstrual hygiene (which includes sanitary napkins, toilets in schools, availability of water, privacy and safe disposal) could contribute to local infections including Reproductive Tract Infections (RTI). Studies have shown that RTIs are closely inter-related with poor menstrual hygiene and pose grave threats to women's lives, livelihood, and education. Services for the prevention and treatment of RTI/Sexually Transmitted Infections are integral part of the Reproductive Child Health II Programme (RCH II).

Clouded by taboos

In India, menstruation and menstrual practices are clouded by taboos and socio-cultural restrictions for women as well as adolescent girls. Limited access to safe sanitary products and facilities is believed to be one of the reasons for constrained school attendance, high dropout rates and ill-health due to infection.

With specific reference to ensuring better menstrual health and hygiene for adolescent girls, the government is launching this scheme as part of the Adolescent Reproductive Sexual Health (ARSH) in the RCH II.

Self-help groups involved

The sanitary napkins will be manufactured and supplied by the Hindustan Latex Limited (HLL) and self-help groups. Tamil Nadu, Haryana and West Bengal will depend totally on self-help groups for the supply of the napkins.

Uniform price

The Mission Steering Group — the highest decision-making body of the NRHM — had approved the proposal for supplying the napkins at a highly subsidised cost of Re.1 a pack of five to the girls below poverty line while the rest would have to pay Rs.5 a pack. However, the price has been made uniform for all girls now.

For safe disposal of the napkins at the community level, deep-pit burial or burning are the options being considered. Due environmental clearance has to be obtained from the States for this. Installing incinerators in schools that can be manually operated is another option which is being explored.