People urged to shun open defecation

Visakhapatnam:District collector A. Shyam Prasad appealed to people to avoid open defecation and maintain cleanliness of the environment on the occasion of World Toilet Day celebrations in Parvathipuram Manyam district on Tuesday. The collector participated in an event at Vikramapuram of Komarada mandal.

Addressing the gathering, he said that open defecation was a social evil and should be avoided for the betterment of environment and health of the society. “We were spending money on health which was caused due to open defecation and insanitation,” he said.

Once health was affected, it reduced the productivity of a person, he said, stating that due to bad practices the society was losing the good environment, polluting the water resources which ultimately spread diseases. The collector further emphasized a need for behavioural change and village level motivation and urged to take responsibility. He further highlighted the safety of girls and women to use toilets and announced that a proposal has been submitted for the construction of new toilets.

He also appealed to the public to adopt the regular practice of hand washing, and to avoid plastic usage. He appreciated the beautification work taken up at the tank by the village volunteers and said that the Vikram Puram had all the qualities to become a model village.