City-based NGO rejuvenating washrooms in state government schools

Hyderabad: Several government schools in Telangana are lacking washroom facilities, resulting in hardships for students, particularly girls. In order to guarantee improved sanitation amenities for the children, a local NGO known as 100 Smiles Charity Foundation has undertaken an initiative to renovate washrooms in government schools. Additionally, they will be appointing a dedicated sanitation worker to maintain cleanliness and hygiene in these facilities.

Manojkumar Chittimalla, founder, 100 Smiles Charity Foundation, said, “Access to quality education and safe drinking water is crucial, but unfortunately, many government schools in Telangana are currently lacking proper sanitation facilities. Over the past seven years, our organisation has actively worked in 50 government schools located in rural areas of Telangana. During our assessment, it became evident that the presence of washrooms is an urgent necessity in every school. Shockingly, we discovered that some schools do not have any washroom facilities, leading female students to resort to going home to use toilets.

This dire situation significantly impacts the children’s well-being, education, safety, and can even contribute to school dropouts. Recognising the need for change, we have formulated a plan to initiate the renovation and construction of toilets in government schools, aiming to improve the overall conditions and create a conducive learning environment for all students.”

As a pilot project we have started renovating the washrooms in Zilla Parishad High School, Padmashalipuram- Rajendranagar in April, as the toilets were in very dilapidated condition, especially female students were facing the problem to use the washrooms and the works will be completed within the week. In this mission under CSR funds, Kore.ai supported us in this project.

One major drawback of government schools in the region is the absence of sanitation workers. However, a notable advantage of our project is that in addition to constructing washrooms, we will be appointing a dedicated sanitation worker for each school.

These individuals will be responsible for closely monitoring and maintaining the cleanliness and hygiene of the washroom facilities. Looking ahead, our plan entails renovating a significant number of government school washrooms that are currently in a deplorable condition. By addressing this pressing issue, we aim to create a healthier and more conducive environment for the students, he added.