Musiri, a remote town in India’s Tamil Nadu state, has launched a scheme to promote hygiene in rural areas by paying residents to use public urinals.

People relieving themselves in the open is a common sight in India’s rural towns and villages, as basic sanitation still eludes millions. [Reuters]

Not really sure about the exact pay, but it’s reported that they would get close to USD1 a month for doing so. Sounds like a small sum, but it could mean something in poor areas… besides, no harm is done for using proper sanitary system.


12 Responses to “Go toilet and get paid in India”

  1. #1. bb on July 8th, 2008

    even when dogs poo outside, their owners should pick the waste up.
    so why shouldn’t people relieve themselves at a proper place?
    this is something that the indians should do, even without any pay.

  2. #2. Yein Jee on July 8th, 2008

    It’s about culture, poverty and education… they wouldn’t know the proper toilet manners (by our standard) if they don’t have a toilet at the first place.

  3. #3. bb on July 8th, 2008

    that’s true…sad for them.
    i don’t mean to disrespect any culture, but i just wanna say that taking your pants off in public is not a pretty sight.
    just hoping that this plan would improve their hygiene.
    at least they finally have real toilets now!

  4. #4. kyon on July 9th, 2008

    india is in deep trouble. the wealth gap is too huge.. without birth control the overpopulation will get worse, and their life can never improve… it can only get worse.

  5. #5. Yein Jee on July 9th, 2008

    kyon… I agree. I always believe that population control is a crucial factor to curb poverty. It’s ironic that those who can’t feed themselves are normally those that have the most number of children… India need a strong government to overhaul their system, from education to economics; but seems like it’s a long way to go at the moment.

  6. #6. bb on July 9th, 2008

    kyon…what you said makes me think of china’s government.
    since china is so overpopulated, they’ve not allowed their people to have more than 1 (or 2? i don’t remember) kids. but i know this doesn’t apply to hk. the hk government encourages their people to have more kids.
    india is the same with africa. they’re not just poor, but are also suffering from a whole lot of illness and disease. on tv, they always show those shows that asks people to sponsor a child from those poor countries. when my mom sees them, she says how stupid of those people to have so much kids when they can’t even afford it. but i see the point there…poor families need more kids to help with the family. it’s not that they want more children to suffer. but this idea becomes a cycle with a negative effect. poor -> have more kids -> more kids suffer from illness -> more poor…

  7. #7. Emilie on July 12th, 2008

    bb, how can they restrict the amount of children a couple have?

  8. #8. Yein Jee on July 12th, 2008

    Emilie… it’s the law. If someone broke the law, they would need to face the consequences. It might sound inhuman, but under some circumstances, it’s necessary.

  9. #9. bb on July 13th, 2008

    i think a couple could still have more children if they really want to.
    but they have to pay some kind of fee.
    so unreasonable, eh?
    too bad for them…but china is seriously overpopulated.
    they must do something to control that.
    they have to base their decisions on the whole, not just a part of their nation.

  10. #10. Yein Jee on July 13th, 2008

    I think they halt the (more money more kids) plan after public complains.

  11. #11. bb on July 14th, 2008

    really? but it’s still true that they aren’t allowed to have over a certain number of children, right?

  12. #12. Yein Jee on July 15th, 2008

    The one family one kid rule is still there. There were suggestions that rich people might be given rights to have more kids, but I think they didn’t push the plan as it’s a clear discrimination to the poor.

    There are some loopholes though… like rich people giving birth in other countries etc.


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