Author : Viral Tripathi
I have a dream, a vision - to restore India's dignity, beauty and respect by making it free of Open Defecation by 2022. To restore the dignity of those 625 million Indians who still don't have access to basic sanitation facilities - Who are giving up their dignity and respect on a daily basis because of a lack of sanitation facility or they are of the view that they don't have a choice. Just imaging how Indian villages/cities/towns ...will look like when there is no foul smell, roads are clean, waterways are clean, holy rivers are pollution free, gutters are clean, the impact on children's health, no diaharrea, the sense of pride this will create amongst you and other fellow citizens, the impact on productivity of labourers, impact on tourism, the list goes on!
I am not ok that a country whose GDP is growing year by year and is expected to have the highest economic growth in years to come lacks such a basic right. The UN has made access to sanitation as human being's fundamental right. India is still not able to provide that.
I am sure you have been affected by this issue at some stage in your life. You would have either witnessed it first hand or observed people defecating in open or have heard about it, seen on TV or the internet .
I am writing to invite you to make a difference in this most important and hidden health, economic and productivity concern India is facing right now!
I am creating this event - Cycle for Sanitation - a bicycle journey from Mumbai to Delhi - 1477 km riding through the golden quadrilateral national highway and visiting nearby villages and towns where open defecation is still practiced. The intention is to raise a sense of urgency to eliminate open defecation in India. I want 100 men/women to participate in this bike challenge and each participant will pledge to construct 30 individual latrines and one community sanitation block in a village of their choice. I have put myself to complete this challenge.
You can also choose to ride 5/10/20/30/50 km in your suburbs, locality and pledge to construct 2/5/8/10/15 latrines respectively in your own neigbhourhood if you are in India or contribute financially for construction of a latrine/sanitation scheme. You can be the local champion of your area. The point is an action is taken/commitment is made to eliminate open defecation.
I want your support to make this vision a reality! Join me. Write to me, call me, email me on how you can participate. I am creating this event as you read this! Join me in this adventure! I need you, India needs you! Share this event in your network, suggest ideas to me what else can be done in this event. I would love to hear your views.
Thanks for taking time to read about this event.
Viral Tripathi
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