Chapter 9 — Healthy Community Living

A community is healthy when its members continuously work together to maintain, improve, and expand available natural resources, recognise their roles and responsibilities, and cultivate values such as cooperation, mutual respect, tolerance, and kindness.

Mawlynnong Village in East Khasi Hills District of Meghalaya, declared Asia's cleanest village in 2003 by Discover India Magazine. It is about 75 km from Shillong and had a population of 414 as per the Census of 2011.

Key features include clean surroundings, access to safe drinking water and sanitation, proper garbage disposal, healthcare services, electricity, transportation, schools, recreational facilities, and employment opportunities.

Stagnant water and open drains breed mosquitoes, which are carriers of malaria, dengue, and chikungunya. Open garbage dumps also breed flies and cockroaches.

Water-borne diseases caused by water pollution include cholera, jaundice, diarrhoea, and gastroenteritis.

Social distancing means deliberately increasing the physical space between people to avoid spreading illness. The chapter states one should stay at least one metre away from another person to decrease the chances of catching coronavirus (COVID-19).

Dos: stay at home unless absolutely necessary; keep at least one metre distance from others. Don'ts: do not hold gatherings, do not go to crowded places like markets or parties, and do not use public transport.

Stigma during an epidemic is the social exclusion or blame directed at people associated with a disease. The chapter states COVID-19 stigma is based on three factors: the disease is new and not fully understood, the unknown leads to fear, and rumours or fake news spread misinformation.

The chapter lists co-operation, kindness, respect, gratitude, joy, peace, and selflessness as essential values for fostering collective work and healthy social relationships.

Camping is an outdoor activity where students leave familiar surroundings to spend one or more nights at an outdoor site. It helps students learn teamwork, self-reliance, co-existence, organisational skills, and appreciation of natural resources. It also offers opportunities for the empowerment of girls.

The chapter lists trekking, river rafting, mountaineering, rock climbing, repelling, paragliding, and caving. It notes these activities should only be conducted in the presence of qualified and professional trainers.

Students can join the National Cadet Corps (NCC), National Service Scheme (NSS), or Bharat Scouts and Guides to participate in camping and adventure activities.

The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, or Clean India campaign, promotes the vision of a clean and hygienic India. The chapter notes this vision can be achieved only if members of every community cooperate and accept individual and collective responsibility for keeping themselves, their homes, and their surroundings clean.

The chapter states that local governments and panchayats must ensure safety rules and regulations, maintain cleanliness, provide equal access to public amenities, promote waste management practices, and support ecological restoration and conservation.

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