Sulaiman's work- my dream mausoleum: Toilet for Babli - A cry to end open defecation in India [poem]

Open defecation has been a long standing problem in India with its ever expanding population. WHO's 2014 report on "progress on Drinking water and sanitation 2014 (click here) says over a billion people defecate openly, and India is the country with the highest population of people defecating openly (597 million ). Even today railway tracks and bushes remain the commonest place for many who openly defecate.

Open defecation is going on in our country since ages, cause of poor drainage / sewage systems in villages, lack of funds to provide lavatories and ideologies/mindset of the people who defecate openly. Defecating openly has also been a leading cause for the spread of enteric fever (typhoid), malaria, hepatitis and other infectious diseases. A large number of children have fallen prey to these infections as open defecation becomes a breeding ground for insect to multiply rapidly. In villages it is very difficult for women to defecate in public, and they end up waiting till dark to find a safe place to defecate.

Having closed toilets/ lavatories would be an ideal solution to these, but it shouldn't only stop here, if the collections are not discarded properly they can spread endemics, hence proper drainage channels or deep pits would be a right choice. Its high time we decide to act against this and save the future of our county

So, to be a part of this social cause and to put an end open defecation in India, I have written this poem (below) in my own poetic style....

Of the prettiest kids in the alley,
Everyone loved Babli,
smart, clever and charming
an innocent soul, ever smiling
come evening her smile is down
awaiting for the sun's radiance to shutdown
She adjusts to her abdominal twitching,
amidst those shameful eyes, relentlessly gazing.

Fear mounts, as she covers her self in the bushes,
surrounded by insects from nearby marshes.
chapped by cold and day long control,
her intestines take a toll
leaving her in state of discomfort,
to force it out with a lot of effort
till she finally squats out with pain,
and woozily falls in lain.

Not until dawn was Babli found unconscious,
with blood dribbling from her anus.
luckily was she rescued and nursed,
till her recovery from the worst.
Soon, along Babli and everyone,
a new revolution had begun
that soon gained thrust
to defecate in a toilet became a must

There are many girls like Babli, who have fallen prey to many diseases cause of open defecation. Its time we act now.... I have done my part, by contributing towards this social cause, you too can can bring about the change in the lives of millions of kids, thereby showing your support for the Domex initiative where they have taken an initiative by joining hands with UNICEF in its CATS [Community Approached to Total Sanitation] program to make villages in Maharashtra and Orrisa open defecation free. All you need to do is “click” on the “Contribute Tab” on www.domex.in and Domex will contribute Rs.5 on your behalf to eradicate open defecation, thereby helping kids like Babli live a dignified life. This program is initiated under HUL (Hindustan Unilever Limited) flagship under the project name Domed Toilet Academy, that began on the 19th November 2013 as they aim to build 2,40,000 toilets by the year 2015. So, lets us all join hands to end to open defecation in India...

-Sulaiman Sait

Here below I leave a video and a few screenshots from this campaign....