JAMMU, NOVEMMBER 19: To mark the World Toilet Day, Director of Rural Sanitation, J&K S. Charandeep Singh, today flagged off Swacchta Run to spread the message of cleanliness and Swatchta among the public.More than 550 students & locals participated in the run flagged off from Mini stadium, Budhi South.DDC Barnoti, Sushma Devi; BDC Barnoti, Brijeshwar Singh Indu; Sarpanches, Panches, Assistant Commissioner (Panchayat), Danish Rasool Mir, Sahil Abrol, BDO Barnoti, Sachin, BDO Nagri, officers of Rural Sanitation and a large number of locals were also present on the occasion.The day was commemorated to celebrate use of toilets and raise awareness among the people without access to sanitation. The focus of the function was to create awareness among the masses regarding the use of the toilet, spread awareness regarding personal hygiene, Solid Liquid Waste Management, counselling of adolescent girls regarding menstrual hygiene & access to sanitation which was displayed by the students of Hr. Secondary School Budhi through various performances like dance, songs on SBM, skit on importance of toilets, Nukkad Natak ,demo on hand wash , debate competition etc.Speaking on the occasion, S. Charandeep Singh highlighted the health hazards of poor sanitation & hygiene. He said that poor sanitation was the main cause of diseases and appealed to the people to understand the health risk of open defecation. He also talked about this year’s WTD theme of ‘Making the Invisible Visible’ and explained how inadequate sanitation leads human waste into rivers, lakes and soil, polluting underground water resources. “The problem seems to be invisible, as the water contamination happens underground. This special day is about highlighting actions to tackle the global sanitation crisis and to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.2: sanitation and water for all by 2030” he added.