In almost every reference to India’s glorious past, we never fail to mention the humble yet advanced civilisation that existed the plains of the Indus river. What happened over these millennia that led to more than half of India’s population ditching toilets and starting defecation in the open? There are only brief references to toilets in the annals of India’s history, while there is nothing recorded about the numbers, usage, or even significance of toilets. Post this began the dark age of open defecation in India that over the centuries took deep cultural and social roots. Many historians believe that with the arrival of the nomadic Aryans, open defecation too entered the Indian psyche.

Source: The Hindu June 03, 2017 18:34 UTC