India, Sept. 23 -- Around 40 open defecation (OD) spots identified recently by Ranchi Municipal Corporation (RMC) will soon get transformed into green covers.

In an attempt to spread the importance of sanitation among every individual, the step taken by the Civic Body will not just keep a tab on the nastiest activity of people defecating in open but will also increase green cover and open spaces.

The Municipal Corporation has decided to plant saplings of religious significance like plantlets of peepal tree in bulk at OD spots. Notably from September 21, deputation of enforcement squads at OD spots has been ensured by the officials of Municipal Corporation in an attempt to make Ranchi Open Defecation Free (ODF) on or before September 30.

However, the concept has not just been confined to deputation of enforcement teams who just have the responsibility of imposing penalty on the defaulters but converting the OD spots into green wraps is on the top priority of this plan.

Notably, RMC has identified spots that were a safe haven for the public for defecating in open since decades. Hitting hard and keeping a strict vigilance on such spots, the enforcement team members are imposing fine amount up to Rs. 500 on all the defaulters.

"Merely deputing staffs at these 40 spots will not fulfill our mission. Considering long term benefit and besides creating awareness, our idea of transforming the OD spots (small or big) into green pockets will be helpful only when the spots are utilized for some constructive purposes," said RMC Officer (Health), Dr. Kiran.

"All the 40 OD spots will be taken up in a phase-wise manner. Also, we have decided to plant only those plants at the OD spots that have some religious significance," added Dr. Kiran.

Interestingly, the concept of planting religious significance saplings instead of fruit bearing plant plantlets has been borrowed from Gumla district that has successfully curbed the menace of defecating in open through applying this idea. In the first phase, around 10 OD spots will be taken up while the remaining OD spots will be under the supervision of RMC team.

The project of transforming the OD spots into green pastures is being done through Information, Education and Communication (IEC) fund, dispersed especially for improving the sanitation status. In three phases, the transformation tasks will be carried out initiating with installing banners, hoardings at the OD sites, cleaning the sites and carrying out the plantation drive.

The City Manager leading the Municipal Corporation's Swacch Bharat Mission (SBM) team, Sandeep Kumar, said, "During a discussion, a City Manager from Gumla advised us to adopt a concept that will not merely help us in protecting the isolated space but later on can be developed as parks. The theory of sacred groves has been adopted by us where patches of vegetation are protected on the basis of religious faith."

However, the Municipal Corporation is yet to construct 500 toilets more at different wards as per the target of building 29,000 toilets within municipal periphery. Besides, adopting this new formula, RMC earlier had also roped in members of civil society for assisting them in creating awareness about constructing toilets.

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