Changing lives of Rural India with effective sanitation solutions
Uttar Pradesh is India's most populated state with over 200 million people. 78% of the total population of Uttar Pradesh lives in rural areas. On one end, millions of people throng to world's seventh wonder, the Taj, and on the other end over 20 million people in the same state do not have access to affordable, safe water. Clean potable water remains a luxury in rural India even today. Two villages-Dhuti and Sahaspur, from the district Pratapgarh, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India are no exceptions. A lifeline like water has been a reason of great stress to a population of some 2000 people in this region, as much of its depleting water has been wasted, polluted and unsustainably managed.
Village women have always been burdened to store sufficient water for their household chores and had to often travel long distance to get their share of water.
Lack of proper sanitation facilities only added to their woes because the traditional toilet solutions
waste more than 5 litres of potable water every flush. Having their own private traditional toilet in their homes was a novelty considering the expense of installation. All this leads to the unsafe and unsanitary tradition of open defecation in fields or a nearby drain at odd hours. One can imagine the inconvenience during rains with water logging all around.
Source: https://www.indiawaterportal.org/articles/high-levels-arsenic-found-groundwater-uttarpradesh
Dr. Nitesh Tiwari runs a homeopathic clinic in this village offering his medical expertise to hundreds of people. He began his career from a government job but soon gave it up to answer a deep inner calling to serve his own village. He joined his mother Smt. Vimla Tiwari, the Village head and actively involved himself along with her in the developmental efforts being done for the village.
Over a period of time, the village has seen major transformation under the wise guidance of Smt. Vimla Tiwari and Dr. Nitesh Tiwari who committed himself to improving the overall health of the village community.
Dr. Tiwari has been working with utmost dedication and passion in enriching the lives of his fellow villagers for more than two decades now.
Moved by the complexity of global water crisis, he propagated maintenance of good sanitation habits and inculcated a mindset of saving water among all villagers including women and children.
He felt that saving water was the key to improving quality of lives, good health, a balanced environment, and a sustainable future. His research on the subject led him to discover SATO Toilet Solutions as the most effective technology in saving water and also as most modern and very clean in sanitation infrastructure.
Dr. Tiwari observed that water consumption for each SATO toilet usage was just 1 litre as against 6 litres of the traditional toilet system, saving 5 litres per usage. In case of a family of 5, each member used the toilet at least twice a day hence consuming just 10 litres per day as against 60 litres if they would have installed the traditional toilet system; saving 50 litres per day and 1500 litres in a month in 310 homes.
Today, almost every home of the selected 2 villages in Pratapgarh has a SATO toilet saving approximately 5 million litres of water per month.
He organized demonstration camps and workshops on several occasions in the village to spread information on SATO Toilets and their multiple benefits like affordability, less water consumption, easy cleanliness, minimizing odor, flies free area and no blockage due to a new innovative trap system. He assisted the villagers to access government support under Swachh Bharat Mission (Clean India Mission) for improved sanitation and helped the local residents build SATO toilets in their homes.
Pratapgarh gets new advanced Toilets
So, 310 houses in Pratapgarh have SATO Toilet systems today. Those who were using the traditional toilet system, are already upgrading to SATO looking at all its advantages.
Village women are delighted as the SATO toilets, named as 'Maryada Bhawan' allows them a life of dignity and privacy that is their fundamental right. With groundbreaking sustainable, affordable and easy - to- install sanitation solutions, SATO toilets are indeed offering safe sanitation solutions to everyone, especially women. Open defecation is not the only choice. They don't have to step out at odd hours now and they can lead a safe and clean life.
No wonder these two villages in Pratapgarh are setting an example for sustainable sanitation solutions in rural India.