Earlier this week, Gargi College witnessed the inauguration of two new washrooms in its vicinity, in association with Sulabh International, Social Service Foundation, the largest not for profit organisation in India. The guest of honour for the same was, Dr Bindeshwar Pathak, founder of Sulabh International.
The event was marked by the inauguration of a toilet complex. The toilets have been constructed in the style of recycled rail compartments, a construction style unique to only Sulabh. The inaugural ceremony was organised on August 2nd, 2017. The itinerary for the day included a performance by Kshitij, The Street Play Society of Gargi College. Their narrative focused on the deplorable state of hygiene in our country, especially so in the rural areas and how an initiative like Sulabh, can help overcome this with collective efforts of the masses. The protagonist of their story, Ramu, is an ordinary man with an extraordinary vision for a cleaner India, who works tirelessly towards the realisation of his dream by helping build toilets. Mr Pathak found himself immensely pleased by their performance and said that he could relate to the character of Ramu very well.
This was followed by a felicitation ceremony where The Principal, Mrs Promila Kumar welcomed Mr Bindeshwar Pathak and felicitated him with a bouquet of flowers. Mr Pathak spoke about his campaign at length and cited personal experiences from his life, drawing on which he had resolved to take action. He established Sulabh International Social Service Organisation in 1970. It is an amalgamation of technical innovation and humanitarian principles and works primarily for the betterment of the society by promoting human rights, environmental sanitation, waste management, non-conventional sources of energy and social makeover through literacy. He has been a recipient of The Padma Bhushan from the Government of India and has also been enlisted to the Global 500 Roll of Honour.
The day came to a very fitting end with the ribbon cutting ceremony and the plantation of a Rudraksha Tree in the sports ground. Mr Pathak was awarded a token of appreciation and the event concluded with a vote of thanks.
Image Credits: www.gargicollege.du.ac.in
Lakshita Arora