City gets 495 community toilets in JJ clusters

Tribune News Service 

New Delhi, December 4

In a major step towards being open defecation-free in line with the Modi government's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, the national Capital gets 495 community toilets in JJ clusters spread across seven constituencies of the city. 

Inaugurating them today Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia announced that the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) will complete its target of setting up 10,000 community toilets by March 31. 

DUSIB has made functional 4,119 toilets, including renovated/new, during the current financial year 2016-17. The community toilets have already been made functional and by the end of this financial year, 10,000 community toilet seats will be made functional to make JJ bastis open defecation-free and about 5,000 more toilets will be added by June 2017. 

According to the Aam Aadmi Party government, these toilet complexes located in Wazirpur, Model Town, Moti Nagar, Jangpura, Kamla Nehru Camp, Kirti Nagar, Jeevan Nagar, Rajinder Nagar, Matiala and Timarpur, were taken over from the BJP-ruled MCDs and were in dilapidated condition before they were renovated for public use with good specifications. 

Sisodia said that this will help people living in slums to ease out with dignity and make their bastis open defecation-free zones.

Sisodia along with Urban Development Minister Satyendar Jain, DUSIB CEO Dr VK Jain and other senior officials, visited community toilets at Z-Block, Loha Mandi, Naraina Industrial Area and Chander Shekhar Azad Colony, Wazirpur Industrial Area.

DSUIB has already provided 4119 toilet seats last year and this year, to make the JJ Clusters defecation-free, it will provide 10,000 toilet seats.

The Deputy Chief Minister said, "To eradicate poverty, we have to ensure there is cleanliness. Contractors should now ensure that the cleanliness of these toilets is maintained at all times. By March 2017, Delhi should be firmly on track to ensure it is open defecation-free." 

Jain said, "It is good that these toilets will be shown under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. Our main aim is to provide the people with a good service."

DUSIB has launched a drive to improve the quality of maintenance, repair, upgradation of the existing toilets in JJ bastis and augmentation by constructing new toilets with one seat for 30 persons as per Swachh Bharat Mission norms to make these bastis open defecation-free. 

DUSIB has carried out a survey with the help of its engineering team which went around in all the JJ bastis from 5 am to 8 am on three consecutive days and 253 open defecation spots were identified.

Accordingly, a gap analysis was carried out and more than 15,000 toilet seats are required to make JJ Bastis open defecation-free. There are 17,405 toilet seats already available, including nearby MCD toilets, which serve the slum population. 

Special arrangements have been made for divyangs (specially abled) and ramps provided in all toilet complexes. Monitoring of all the toilet complexes will be done through in-house team of dedicated staff and designed mobile App. 

"Exclusive teams will conduct regular inspections and members (expert) have been entrusted with the task of strict monitoring of the operation and maintenance of these complexes to ensure quality service to the slum dwellers," said the government. 

For the first time, water has been taken to each seat and each toilet complex has been assigned unique Id for its proper maintenance.