Just back from a two-day session on the improvement of rural sanitation at the Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration,(YASHADA) in the city, she will now take on the role of a resource person for bringing about the requisite change in her village. Her focus will be on how to initiate indoor toilet facilities at homes, schools and anganwadis with a mere investment of Rs 1,500.

She is not the only one. Spreading the similar message will be 80 women representatives from the state who also participated in this unique workshop at YASHADA where they were taught the two pit latrine concept along with how to initiate low cost sanitation facilities in their villages.

With just 2,367 gram panchayats bagging the ideal village status among the 27,873 gram panchayats in the state and Pune district getting a clean chit for only 103 gram panchayats amongst the 409 in the district, the workshop is now looking at the women representatives to bring about the necessary attitudinal change.

According to the director, environment and sanitation cell at YASHADA who coordinated the programme, helping the women in their endeavour will be the government's thrust on construction of indoor toilets with schemes like Below Poverty Line (BPL) families getting Rs 1,200-1,500 for constructing these toilets. The sarpanchs can further ensure that the requisite funds reach these people, he said.

From use of low-cost sanitation facility, to fitting the facility at a 35 degree slope which will help minimise the use of more water, to digging the requisite three inches pit for laying the inlet and outlet pipelines, costing only Rs 1,500, the sarpanchs were equipped with all the information at the YASHADA workshop.

Panchsheela Kadaklak, sarpanch of Kanhewadi in Chakan, who attended the meet, has already been talking to her village folks about not defecating in the open. "Though most of them have got indoor toilets, I would motivate the remaining to have one in their own homes," she said.

Having started with women, the training imparted by the environment and sanitation department of the state, will look at training around 500 village representatives shortly, added Bhushan.