Mark up your calendars, today is UN's World Toilet Day

Read full article by Randall Hacky of Bloomberg News here:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/world/2014/11/19/with-world-toilet-day-hopes-show-global-life-saving-potential/q4KCOIHUJgX7IMt78ZCa7J/story.html

This is not for every one but those who believe that relieving themselves in open without even thinking about it. It is a common scene in most Indian Cities (Silicon Valley of India included) and perhaps in all Indian countryside; a man relieving himself and sometimes exposing himself in unseemly manner. It is not just men, the women as well, but not so common in urban settings, but yes on either side of rail tracks.

I remember way back in the 1970's the local municipality built urinals with tiles and all. After a month; when it was inspected, the toilets were found to be impeccably clean but the outside of the urinals it was a different thing. The new urinals were simply not used.

Better sanitation is a must and no amount of throwing slogans will help. 'Toilets first, temples next' is a good start, but it really should be, 'Toilets first, toilets next, toilets always'. In fact, the sanitation around the sacred temples are the worst offenders. Go to Thirupathi or any other temple in India and you can see how bad the sanitary condition is around the temples. The economically depressed classes; the not so affluent pilgrims; the temples not providing facilities; the State Government are all to be blamed.   In as recent as 2009 I travelled the Southern Part of India visiting the famous temples that are included in the famous "Divya Deshams". It was enormously satisfying to a Hindu like myself, but the approaches to the temples; the routes to the temples; were the most disgusting to say the least. Even the road side famous eating places lack basic facilities.

Here is a picture of a dirty 'Kalyani (small pond where devotees sometimes take dips)' near a very famous South Indian temple. I am sure no one takes dips in this pond and has become a garbage dump.