ARTICLE | Public Places & Sanitation Infra
State of public toilets in India Construction of toilets to make them universally accessible is one of the most important aspects of the Swachh Bharat Mission. According to the data of Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U), government has constructed around 5,95,146 Public Toilets (PTs) and Community Toilets (CTs) across the nation. However, the real state of public toilets is grimmer at ground level Hetesh nigam Editorial Assistant
L
atest data shows that the Government of India has completed around 117 per cent of its mission with respect to construction of public and community toilets across the nation. However, a latest survey by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) shows that almost 55 per cent of the public toilets in Delhi are either in unusable condition or extremely dirty. Moreover, there are
evident differences in data provided by government agencies and civil societies.
Inadequate Infrastructure
Government of India’s advisory on construction of PTs and CTs states that there should be adequate lighting and water, proper cleaning and adequate urinals. For a CT, facility area to wash clothes is also equally important. However, all these requirements are hardly met in the premises of a PT or CT. Lack of proper infrastructure plays a very important role in letting toilet built under SBM-U remain dirty and
unusable. Since the government floats third party tenders for maintenance of these toilets and since there is virtually no one overseeing their work, the parties that are allotted the tenders often misuse the money given to them to make profits. This not only leads to the wastage of public funds but also jeopardizes the health and well-being of those communities/people using these community/public toilets. Geeta, a domestic helper living in slums of Sri Niwaspuri, Delhi, said, “Due to heavy public usage, the toilet seats are damaged and have also not been repaired since long. This is why we are forced to defecate at night in the open. We know that this is not safe but we have no other option.” Talking about third-party tenders, Sulabh International has been at the forefront of government’s mission of constructing public and community toilets. According to the data on their official website, Sulabh International has constructed almost 1.5 million 2-pit pour-flush toilets across 27 states in the country. PTs and CTs constructed and maintained by Sulabh International are some of the most well-maintained toilets built under SBM-U in the country. However, availability of PTs and CTs has been in question owing to the huge population size of India. According to the advisory of SBM-U, there should be one toilet for every 1 to 12 persons. However, Dharavi, the largest slum in Asia with almost 8.5 lakh residents, has just about 8000 toilets, according to a survey by The MOJO. Slums are the major users of community toilets across the country. Sarla, a domestic worker living in the slums of East Delhi, said, “Instead of walking for 15 minutes and then standing in queue to use the toilet, we prefer to relieve ourselves in the open at deserted places after its dark.”
Toilets for women and PwD
Women friendly toilets is also one of the criteria mentioned in the advisory of SBM-U. However, a survey by Pinkishe, an organisation working to
36 October 2020 | www.urbanupdate.in
