A nondescript village in Haryana was on Friday rechristened “Trump Sulabh Village” in a gesture to the American President ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Washington.
A billboard declaring “Welcome to Trump Village”, accompanied with a beaming portrait of the U.S. President, was unveiled in the hamlet earlier known as Marora.
NGO Sulabh International Social Service Organisation carried out the name-changing exercise.
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Promoting sanitation
Sulabh International founder Bindeshwar Pathak, who had made an announcement to this effect in Washington earlier this month, said the move was aimed at encouraging businessmen to adopt villages in India to promote sanitation.
“If every businessman and NRI decides to adopt a village in India, we can see a turnaround. I hope more and more people will come forward to help for the cause of sanitation,” said Mr. Pathak.
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He added that he had squandered an offer of financial support from the then U.S. President Ronald Reagan to build toilets in India and it was on the back of my mind when he announced to name this village after Mr. Trump.
He also expressed hope that the gesture would strengthen ties between the two countries.
Mr. Pathak said he had no offer of any help from Mr. Trump for the village as of now.
“First, let us do something on the ground before we go ask for any help from him,” said Mr. Pathak.
Helping women, kids
The NGO plans to construct 120 toilets in the village, which has a population of around 1,500. Monica Jain, honorary vice-president, Sulabh International, said 40 families already had toilets and they were committed to constructing toilets for the remaining households.
Besides, the NGO plans to repair the Panchayat Bhawan, open a sewing training centre for women and set up a tuition centre for the children of widows.
Former Sarpanch Jabbar Khan said the village had failed to get any help from the administration for development, but now they had lot of hope from the NGO.
As Shakeel Ahmed (20), a resident of the village, put it, “It feels different.”