Chhatrapur: In a bid to check open defecation, the block administration here in Ganjam district Tuesday presented red roses to those who prefer to continue with the practice.
A team led by Chhatrapur BDO Banshidhar Khosla arrived at Nauli village in the wee hours and gifted roses to the men and women who were returning after defecating in the open. Some of the villagers were taken aback at this gesture and promised not to do it again.
Later, an awareness meeting was held which was attended by several villagers and panchayat representatives.
The officials explained to people the harmful effects of open defecation. They can suffer from various diseases if they don’t use sanitary toilets at home, officials said. The administration has issued several work orders for installation of toilets in the village, it was learnt.
However, the beneficiaries are dillydallying in constructing the toilets. According to official sources, 350 beneficiaries of Nauli village were given work orders for toilets but only 49 have gone for it so far.
To get the job done, the administration has adopted this unique method of offering roses to the people. Apart from BDO Khosla, offficials who were part of the team included Mahesh Tarai, Rakesh Reddy of sanitation mission, GPO Dharmaraju Reddy and engineer Shashank Shekhar Padhi. PNN