Rohini Karale is a young social crusader who is making a difference in the lives of several girls in Nandgaon village, one toilet at a time
Unhappy with the open defecation issue in her village, 15-year-old Rohini Karale, residing in Nandgaon village at Karjat, decided to put words into action. What did she do? She began with building a toilet in her own house.
Rohini Karale resides in a village which has over 100 houses, but none of them have any toilet facility. The villagers defecate in the open areas that lead to the forest near the village. Lack of appropriate sanitation facilities led to several problems. As the standard of living is low, the families struggle to save money and a major part of the income is utilized in procuring basic health needs and food expenses.
Frustrated with everyday problems, Rohini suggested the idea of building an in-house toilet to her grandfather, and made him understand the importance of the facility.
"I requested my grandfather to take up the issue in public since he was the Sarpanch at that point of time. Speaking about the issue in a public forum helped others to take cognizance of the problems faced by teenage girls and women in my village. With the help of Habitat for Humanity India, an NGO, we built a toilet in our house. Now, within a year of this initiative, at least 15 houses in the village have toilet facilities," said Rohini.
Speaking about her childhood and the problems she faced due to lack of sanitation facilities, Rohini said, "When I was young I never hesitated much to defecate in the open. But, as I grew up to be a woman, things changed for me. I had to wait for sunset to relieve myself. It is difficult during menstruation because those days we need to take extra care. But now a toilet facility inside my house has made a drastic change not just for me, but it is making other villagers realize the importance of hygiene and sanitation facilities."
According to Karale, many girls dropped out from the school because of this issue. Speaking about the condition, Sunandha Karale, Rohini's mother said, "Around 30 per cent of the villagers now utilize toilet facilities in their own house rather than going to the mangroves."
Commenting on the toilets built and facilities provided in Nandgaon village, Santosh Dangare, a local member of the NGO said, "There were toilets in the school earlier but they were in dilapidated condition and not functional. We repaired the toilets for the students and made them functional. More toilets will be constructed in the near future."
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