World Toilet Day is celebrated every year to promote sanitation and also help break taboos around toilets. The United Nation General Assembly formally recognised November 19 as the World Toilet Day in 2013.
Defecating in open spreads various life-threatening diseases. World Toilet Day aims to tackle the global sanitation crisis. According to the United Nations, the day aims to provide access to sustainable sanitation to all by 2030.
According to the UN, the theme for World Toilet Day 2019 is 'Leaving No One Behind.'
Sanitation is a person's human right and despite that even today, 4.2 billion people are deprived of safely managed sanitation, the UN says.
A toilet is not mere toilet but it is in fact "life-saver", dignity-protector" and "opportunity-maker", it said.
According to the UN, 'safely managed sanitation service' means that people are using hygienic toilet facilities that are not shared with other people in the house. It also ensures that the excreta are either separated from human contact or safely disposed off.
UN says that even today, 637 million people across the world still defecate in open. It further said that at least 2 lakh 97 thousand children under the age of five die are estimated to die every year due to diseases such as unsafe drinking water, sanitation and hand hygiene.
The report further said that lack of sanitation is estimated to cause 4 lakh 32 thousand diarrhoeal deaths every year and is cause for several diseases including intestinal worms, trachoma and schistosomiasis.
According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), at least 2 billion people across the world use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces.
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