‘Name And Shame’ Policy To Retain Open Defecation Free Tag In Panchkula

New Delhi: Panchkula, the city of five canals, is going the extra mile to retain its open defecation free (ODF) tag which it attained back in October 2017 on Rashtriya Swachhta Diwas. The Panchkula Municipal Corporation has come up with an idea to ‘name and shame’ those people who still choose to defecate and urinate in the open in Panchkula. As the name suggests, name and shame policy aims to publicly shame the defaulters by either uploading their name on the corporation’s website and facebook page or by coming out with ‘wanted like posters’ of the offenders. The aim of name and shame policy is to make individuals realise about the shameful deed.

Both rural and urban areas of Haryana are ODF, but still there are some people who prefer defecating in open. Currently, open defecation in our area attracts a fine of ₹500, but imposing fine can go on and on. It is pivotal to come up with a viable solution and bring change in behaviour of habitual offenders and for that we had to come up with the name and shame policy, says Rajesh Jogpal, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Panchkula.

The Municipal Corporation has 20 different teams for 20 different wards to keep a check on open defecation and open urination. The teams go out in the morning at 6AM and do rounds of the city. In the past two months, the corporation had issued 131 challans.

As the objective is getting people to use toilets, the Municipal Corporation developed three different strategies under name and shame policy. The first one is to share the name of the defaulters on the district and corporation’s website and facebook page. The second one is coming out with posters having pictures of offenders and their name. The third and the last one involves taking help from the transgender community who will go to the house of individuals defecating in open and sing songs which will make them understand the importance of toilets and why they are in the wrong.

As far as taking help from transgender is concerned, we are in the process of that. Transgenders will go to the defaulter’s house and sing sarcastic songs like, ‘Wow! You have done a very good deed by defecating in open’. With all the strategies, our aim is just to make people aware and make them use toilets. We do not intend to belittle anyone, says Commissioner Rajesh Jogpal.

Not only this, the Municipal Corporation plans to apply same policy i.e, name and shame policy on those who litter and spit in public places. As of now, a fine of ₹500 is levied on those who spit and litter in public places and 17 challans has been issued in past 3-4 days.

This is not the first time that corporation has put in so much of efforts in sanitation. In a bid to maintain cleanliness in public and community toilets in Panchkula, the Municipal Corporation recently decided to install a feedback machine outside every public and community toilets. With this individuals will be able to give their feedback by rating toilets on the basis of cleanliness. These machines have three buttons- red, yellow and green. By pressing a particular button, toilet users can register their feedback.

We are almost done with installing public feedback machines. Within a day or two feedback machines will be in action and individuals will be able to rate toilets, says Commissioner Rajesh Jogpal.

Also Read: Not Happy With The Swachh Quotient Of Toilets In Panchkula? Here Is What You Can Do