Open defecation in north Chennai is a huge problem now!!
Cleaning human waste from streets etc would cause harm for both the residents and sanitary workers.
The presence of dilapidated and unsafe public toilets across north Chennai has become a thorn in the flesh now. Bitter truth is that in north Chennai open defecation is being done due to the above said reason.
According to a staff from Tondiarpet associated with the Makkalai Thedi Maruthuvam scheme,most public toilets in the region were unsafe for the residents. This has led to open defecation by the residents belonging to areas like Kodungaiyur, M.K.B. Nagar etc. There are some unknown persons who loiter around the public toilets and consume alcohol etc.
The staff spoke about how the public toilets have become unusable as they were in dilapidated condition now. There were 4 public toilets initially here and GCC demolished 2 of them and rest 2 toilets are not usable. She was of the view that awareness regarding issues associated with open defecation must be raised among the public.
A civic activist named Mr. L.M. Jaiganesh has revealed that railway tracks in Basin Bridge in Vyasarpadi were used for open defecation by the 1000 tenement residents as public toilets were in bad condition. He added that the sanitary napkin dispenser was broken and there was water scarcity also. It was brought out by some local authorities that old buildings would be demolished and new ones would be constructed. Another activist Mr. Naresh mentioned that despite the absence of doors the women have been using the facility for more than 2 years.
