NEW DELHI, Jan. 18 -- The 14 year old newly-married bride left her house in Sitapur to stay with her 18 year old husband in a Kanpur slum, Uttar Pradesh. Kalavati Devi was disgusted to notice everyone in her Raja ka Purwa slum releasing themselves in the streets. "If someone were to draw a picture of hell, that slum would perfectly fit," she commented.
She shared her idea of building latrines in her area. Her husband Jairaj Singh agreed to cooperate with her.
When they approached the Kanpur Municipal Corporation, the commissioner was ready to offer them two lakh rupees to build a community latrine, provided that the community contributes another one third of that amount.
But the 700 families living there, consisting of poor rickshawalah...