Taking up the cause of improving public hygiene and abating diseases, actor Akshay Kumar has released a new video in which he speaks about the evils of open defecation.
Actor Akshay Kumar talks from his heart and when he does, fans can’t help but listen. In his latest video, the actor has taken up the cause to spread awareness about open defecation and highlighted how it’s one of the major problems in our country. Making it clear that this video is in no way a promotional activity or publicity for his upcoming film, about the same subject, Akshay said that he was shaken to find shocking facts during the research for his film.
Addressing the issue of open defecation, Akshay said, “More than half of the population in our country, especially women, do not have access to toilets and they have to defecate in the open. Since they cannot go in broad daylight, they step out, out of their homes, as early as 4 in the morning and go out to the jungles or fields to defecate.”
The actor called it ironic that in a country where women are expected to cover their heads, they are also expected to defecate in the open, in dirty surroundings.
Calling it a practice that makes everyone prone to ailments, Akshay shared: “As many as one thousand kids are dying every day due to illness. It’s like two aeroplanes carrying 500 kids each crashing every day in our country.”
It’s the thinking that needs to change, Akshay added. “People think when there are such vast jungles and fields in villages, why does one need to build toilets? It’s shocking that 54% people in our country do not have toilets in their homes. They don’t understand that if kitchen and bedroom are necessary, so are toilets.”
Sharing the statistics, the actor revealed that in the last one year, the government has built over 10 lakh toilets.
“But unfortunately, most people have tried their cattle or are using them as the storeroom and some have made them into shops. I fail to understand why we need to wait for the government to take such initiatives. We can’t easily wash off our hands and let the government take action.”
Making another strong point, Akshay said that whatever we donate in the name of religion, we can give at least 10% of it to the needy, and build toilets for them to improve their lives.
Urging people to change their thought process, the actor concluded by saying, “Clean India is a dream and it can be accomplished only when we pledge to keep our houses clean and take care of everyone’s health and hygiene. Soph aur shauch dono said karo please (improve both your thoughts and hygiene)