BMC ropes in central agency to build toilets

BHUBANESWAR: With Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' gaining momentum, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to expedite construction of 21 more public toilets in the city.
The civic body will sign an MoU with National Building Construction Corporation Limited (NBCC), under the ministry of urban development, for the purpose. Currently, the city has 22 public toilets.
Official sources said the corporation will spend around Rs 3 crore on these toilets and has earmarked lands for them."The lands have been selected near sewerage lines. The toilets will have facility for treatment and disposal of liquid waste," said BMC spokesperson Srimanta Mishra.
He said tenders will be floated for maintenance of the toilets. "We may entrust the task to multiple agencies," Mishra said, adding, the nominal fee to be charged for using the toilets is yet to be decided.
Of the existing 22 toilets, most are maintained by Sulabh International, an organization promoting environment-friendly sanitation. But there are no toilets in major markets at Ashok Nagar, Bapuji Nagar, Saheed Nagar, Unit-IV and Master Canteen, which attract hordes of people all through the day. The Unit-I Market, one of the largest wholesale markets in the state with over 1,500 shops, has only four urinals and that too for men only.
According to World Health Organization guidelines, for every 100 people there should be one public toilet. The capital, with over eight lakh population, should have 8,000 public toilets.