Puducherry’s new lieutenant governor Kiran Bedi wants to bring an end to open defecation and wanted Rajinikanth to promote and support this cause.
In a column for NDTV.com, she writes that cleanliness was a huge challenge. Bedi said that open defecation by many people who build their homes without give space for toilets was a main problem that the administration wished to tackle. “They believed the lands, parks, lakes, water bodies were there for them to openly defecate in,” she writes.
“Friends, this is why I asked for the most famous artiste of our times, Rajinikanth, to be the Brand Ambassador of the cause of Swachh Puducherry. I felt with his message, several will build toilets on their own, others with government assistance. It will hasten the behavioural change, vital for putting this on the fast track," she writes.
She writes that though enough funds were being released by the centre under the Swachh Bharat Movement, implementation and sustaining the projects were tough.
Bedi points out that a large scale system and infrastructure is required to build toilets. “Politicians, Collectors, BDOs, public officials, women self-help groups, NGOs? Who all? Who brings them together? And then who implements and sustains this?,” she asks.
“Our Collector in Puducherry, P Jawahar, offered just one Kabali ticket free for those volunteering to build their toilets - and there was a riot. Imagine if Rajinikanth lends his face and voice to the change!,” she writes.