Police families oppose public toilet in Mandvi fearing foul smell in area

Officials spent Rs12.5 L on pre-fabricated container but were opposed

Lokseva Welfare Association (LWA), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) has come forward to help the civic body for constructing toilets for people in Mohammed Ali road. However, this is being opposed by police families residing in Mandvi. The LWA has got a positive reply to go ahead with the project work and cannot proceed even after a year.

Babu Sumra, a member of the LWA, stated, “Earlier, we had given a proposal to the BMC to construct air-conditioned toilets in this locality, but the tenants of the police quarters opposed this move. Later on, the Pydhonie Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (Ward B) officials asked us to bring a readymade module. We did procure it from Delhi and it cost us Rs 12.5 lakh.”

They will soon have to change the locality and find a new place for this ready-made toilet.

“The residents had opposed the toilets earlier, saying that construction work will create nuisance, so we bought ready-made containers. But now they are not even allowing us to install the pre-fabricated toilet container on the said location stating that it will give them bad odour. We have explained to the residents and reassured them they will not suffer from bad odour. There will be a censor machine inside the toilet, yet the residents are opposing it,” said Sumra.

Udaykumar Shiroorkar, assistant commissioner of Pydhonie ward said the pre-fabricated toilet container is lying on Mohammed Ali Road because now the officials have to find an appropriate location for it. The “NGO had gone about installing it at the suggested location given by us, but now the families of the police quarters are opposing.”

To construct any public toilet, a prior consent of the citizens residing in that vicinity is necessary. Shiroorkar added, “We took all necessary permissions before giving the work order to the NGO. The residents had only one problem. That of constructing the toilet, hence we asked the NGO to procure pre-fabricated toilet containers. Now they are giving another reason, that of bad odour.”

However, the fact is, there is no toilet facility in the entire stretch of Mohammed Ali Road and the officials realising the need had planned to construct one keeping in mind the market area.

“In the three kilometre radius there is only one toilet at a petrol pump near the JJ flyover and even this toilet facility is in a bad condition. Therefore, we pinned down on constructing the toilet near Mandvi Government Post Office (GPO),” the officer added.

So much for the chief minister’s claim that Mumbai is an open-defecation free city.

To construct any public toilet, prior consent of the citizens residing in that vicinity is necessary. But, the fact is, there is no toilet on Md Ali Road