Open defecation is disastrous when practiced in very densely populated areas, where it is impossible to keep away human faeces from crops, wells, food and children’s hands. Groundwater is also contaminated by open defecation. Many ingested germs and worms spread diseases. They prevent the body from absorbing calories and nutrients. Nearly one half of India’s children remain malnourished. Lakhs of them die from preventable conditions. Diarrhoea leaves Indians’ bodies smaller on average than those of people in some poorer countries where people eat fewer calories. Underweight mothers produce stunted babies prone to sickness who may fail to develop their full cognitive potential. The germs released into environment harm rich and poor alike, even those who use latrines.

Correct Option (c)

The passage explicitly links open defecation to several detrimental outcomes, including malnutrition, diarrhoea, stunted physical growth, impaired cognitive development, and increased mortality rates among children. These factors directly impede the health, educational attainment, and overall productivity of the population. A workforce suffering from such conditions possesses reduced potential and efficiency, thereby diminishing the human capital of the nation.

Incorrect Options:

The passage primarily discusses the consequences of open defecation, not its underlying causes or the financial capacity of government bodies to provide sanitation facilities. Therefore, inferring a lack of government resources for latrines is not supported by the provided text.

While the passage highlights open defecation as a serious public health issue in India, it does not assert that it is the most important or critical public health problem. Such a conclusion would be an overgeneralization beyond the scope of the information presented.

The passage focuses specifically on the situation in India and the impacts of open defecation within the country. It does not provide information or context to generalize these observations and problems to all developing countries globally.