On the eve of World Toilet Day, Sulabh International founder Bindeshwar Pathak said India should go back to the Harappan civilization.
“Everything was planned”Before inaugurating the International Toilet Festival at Central Park in Connaught Place here on Tuesday, Dr. Pathak said: “Everything was in place in the Harappan civilization. There was a designated area for cleaning, bathing, defecating, drainage, etc….everything was planned.”
“We don’t know where we missed the link. There is a gap,” he said while talking to The Hindu in response to a query on how India, being one of the world’s oldest civilizations, now needs education on cleanliness and hygiene.
Thousands of children from various Delhi schools formed a human chain at the event and took the pledge to keep their city and country clean, and educate others about sanitation. The event focussed on the need for “toilets for all by 2019”.
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Vijay Goel and Dr. Pathak unveiled what is possibly the world’s largest replica of a toilet.
“It is shocking that nearly 48 per cent of India’s urban and 60 per cent rural population has no access to toilets. One of the important aspects of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is a toilet in every household by 2019. By this we not only stop open defecation, but also check many diseases,” Mr. Goel said.
