The first thing that catches attention of a visitor at Regullanka, a village in flood-prone Avanigadda mandal in Krishna district, is the good practice of the residents cultivating kitchen gardens using organic manure generated from their eco-friendly toilets.
This was not the case a few years ago and the village has come a long way. Earlier, villagers opted for open defecation in the absence of toilets. Apart from unhygienic conditions, the villagers would worry about the consequences and the inconvenience faced by women to attend nature’s call.
City-based NGO Arthik Samata Mandal (ASM) lent a helping hand by constructing eco-friendly ECOSAN toilets. These toilets have two chambers used alternately and they are provided with a concrete bottom to avoid contact of human excreta with the soil.
“After excretion, the user sprinkles ash or soil over the excreta and the drop hole is closed with a lid. There is a detachable concrete slab in the rear portion of the toilet and the entire excreta, which is accumulated in the chambers is removed after six months. By then it turns into organic compost,” says ASM secretary Nau Gora.
There are about 110 families in the village and the organisation spent about Rs.25,000 on each toilet constructed in association with Switzerland-based Terre des Hommes (TDH), she says.
“We were in need of toilets but we were sceptical about using these toilets. After initial few months, we were convinced. There is no bad odour and the excreta, which turns into compost, is used in the fields and kitchen gardens,” says Venkata Ramana, member of the Village Development Committee.
Inspired by Regullanka, the neighbouring Patakota, Vasumetla Varpu, K. Kothapalem villagers are demanding construction of similar toilets in their villages. “We have financial constraints and are approaching a few corporate companies for help. Hope things work,” says Ch. Satyanarayana, Project Director of ASM.
Speaker Kodela Sivaprasada Rao and Deputy Speaker Mandali Buddha Prasad, who visited the village on Friday, complimented ASM and the villagers for constructing and using such eco-friendly toilets.
“I am convinced about the benefits of this project. Though, financially these toilets are bit costly, they are ideal for flood and cyclone-prone areas. I will recommend about this project to the government,” said Mr. Rao.
