Flag bearers of cleanliness

There was a time when Daksha Rathore dreaded waking up early morning. It wasn't so much about lack of sleep due to waking up at an unearthly hour but the 'walk of shame' which she had to endure every single day with a dozen odd women from her neighbourhood. It was the walk that took them to bushes, before the sun rose, to answer nature's call.

But today this sarpanch from Devbhumi Dwarka district in Verad, Gujarat, is not just a proud toilet owner but also a sanitation champion for others who have, for long, been used to defecating in the open. Almost all the women in her village had faced the problem of going out in the field for defecation. For them it was next to hell, a shameful act they had to perform every day. "Constructing a toilet in our house has changed my life. Darkness is no longer my best friend," says Rathore.

(Right) Daksha Rathore, sarpanch from Devbhumi Dwarka district in Gujarat poses with fellow campaign worker.

During the Swachh Shakti 2019 convention held in Kurukshetra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was talking about women like Rathore when he made a special mention of how 'rani mistris' (women construction workers) are changing the face of the country. Rathore, 40, has travelled several thousand kilometers to hear the PM laud her efforts in bringing a change. In her village of 8,000 households, there are hardly 50 homes which do not have a toilet now.

"It hasn't been an easy battle to fight. The mindset of people when we ask them to do something different is difficult to deal with," says Radhika Irumbedu from Aarani Block in Tamil Nadu's Tiruvannamalai district. Her biggest challenge was convincing people from the backward classes to come forward for construction of toilets in their homes. "The women in the households took up the cudgels to build a toilet on their own thereby becoming 'rani mistri'. Soon the message spread like a wildfire around the village," she says. In two years, this 44-year-old was able to get 476 toilets constructed in her village. "The fear of being spotted was the biggest issue with women that led to the change," she adds.

Irumbedu was awarded by Prime Minister Modi at Swachh Shakti 2019, an event organised by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation to highlight the work done by women. Her family members were often upset with her for the long hours she spent outside. "With this award they realise that my efforts haven't gone waste," says an ecstatic Irumbedu who is accompanied by 25 other campaign workers from her state. "In the past, most people in my block didn't know the consequences of defecating in open. It was simply a habit, they we were not educated on the importance of hygiene and toilet construction. All of that has changed now," she says.

Swachh Bharat was a term which made little sense to Lalhmunliani when she first heard it in 2014. The Swachhagrahi or cleanliness campaign worker from Thingsul Tlangnuam in Aizwal district in Mizoram was a homemaker who had not given much thought about cleanliness other than inside her house. But once the idea of making her state ODF (open defecation free) began shaping up, the 48-year-old began inspiring women in her village by giving her own example. "I told them how my family members do not fall sick as often as earlier once we had constructed a proper toilet. I gave them lessons in hygiene. Just telling them the amount of money they will save by leading healthy lives was motivating enough."

For Prem Lata, the sarpanch from Katra Vaishno Devi in J&K's Reasi district, the respect that her villagers bestow on her is way beyond the meagre salary that she earns from the government. "We are paid only `2,500 as salary. But the respect I earned from my campaign makes up for everything," she says. In 2016, Prem Lata started organising group meetings with the women from her ward and started delivering hygiene. "Earlier many people in my neighbourhood laughed at me but now they consider my opinion valuable," she says. The change came upon after toilets were constructed in every household.

While for many the fight starts at constructing the toilet, for some women, it's about making do with funds. Every household in a village is paid `12,000 to construct a toilet. But for Prem Lata, this amount is too little. "We live in a hilly area and this amount doesn't suffice the construction of a proper, longlasting toilet. Most of us have put money from our end."

While there are a few niggles, most women are beaming. And these are the smiles that have come with pride and dignity.