Meet 104-year-old villager, Kunwar Bai, who sold her livestock to build toilets at home

Kunwar Bai, a 104-year-old woman from Kotabharri a village in Chhattisgarh’s Dhamtari district, sold her goats for constructing toilets in her home. The Prime Minister said it is a big sign of changing India. Kunwar Bai does not watch TV or read papers, but the message of building toilets under clean India mission reached her. She sold 8-10 goats to build toilets at home. She has also encouraged others from the village to build toilets. Now every home in the village has toilets.

Kunwar Bai was felicitated for her efforts to make her village ‘open defecation free’, during the launch of ‘Rurban Mission’ at Kurrubhat village in the state’s Naxal-hit Rajandgaon district on Sunday.

Two development blocks – Ambagarh Chowki and Chhuriya – of Rajnandgaon have also been declared ‘open defecation free’.

Calling it as a major change taking place at the grassroots level of the country, the Prime Minister said, “The country is changing. It seems when a woman at a remote village makes efforts to fulfil a dream of clean India mission, she is an inspiration for everyone, especially the youth,” reports The Times Of India.

“Even a Prime Minister has to think before enforcing taxes (on public), but people in these blocks without hesitation decided to slap fine on those who defecated in open which is a good initiative for the welfare of society. Making an area open defecation free is a biggest advantage and respect to our mother and sisters who have to go down to fields and forests (to relieve themselves). I bow my head in respect to them,” said the Prime Minister, as reported by NDTV.

The Prime Minister also felicitated Phoolbasan Bai Yadav, a social worker for her efforts towards development of economically and socially backward women in the state. She was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2012 for her work.

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