Dustbin distribution at Leper, Naroda Ashram, Sughad

On Wednesday Ramanbhai and I went to the Leper Community to give away the dustbins that had been made. The dustbins are these green colored tin cans that are have painted on them "kachro mane aapo" or "give me trash." This campaign is a way to get people to stop throwing trash everywhere and increase cleanliness. These trashcans are readily visible in the Ramapir Tekro. The Leper Community is actually a very clean community - these people are good about keeping it clean! Every family had to pay 5 rupees for their trashcan. The purpose of the payment was so that the people took care of the trashcan. If they would have been given out for free, no one would have really used it properly and cared for it. This way, it was an investment at token cost. I was truly shocked that no one complained about the cost of the bins! They were, however, very concerned with the 4 tiny holes in the bottom. These were designed to one drain water out of the cans from rain (since their cans will often be exposed to the outdoors) and also to keep people from using the cans as storage! We had about 50 families come and get their cans - and now the rest will be stored at the community center for the remaining families to come pay for and get at a later date. All in all, a successful distribution.



On our way back we stopped by the Naroda ashramshala to take a took, meet the staff with Ramanbhai, and see if any of the kids have any medical issues needing attention. Quick easy visit, with no concerns!

While talking they realized that I had never visited Sughad, which is where the Environmental Sanitation Institute is housed, so they decided that is not acceptable and took me for a visit. This place was amazing! The setup was amazing - the facilities all state of the art, and the concept mind blowing. The organization works with Manav Sadhna, but is it's own entity that was formed prevent open defecation, prevent the need for handling of human waste by hand, and increasing the sanitation standards of the nation. At the site they have on display over 10 different types of toilets that are aimed at different types of environments to meet various needs. Their website is www.esi.org.in. It's very interesting - who would have known there are that many different types of toilets! This organization does lots of public health stuff - hopefully something I can get involved with during my time here!