HYDERABAD: Inspired by the story of a brother gifting his sister a toilet in Kowkoor, the GHMC, on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, allocated toilets as gifts by seven brothers in the Panjagutta circle to their respective sisters.
K. Satyanarayana, the Deputy Commissioner of Jubilee Hills, said that a total of 68 toilets had been built in areas, including Shaikpet, Venkateshwara Colony, Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills, at a cost of Rs 12,000 each, under Central and state governments schemes.
The size of each toilet is four by five feet and is meant to be used by a single family. A sewage connection, linked to the existing pipeline, has been provided by the GHMC.
“Of the 68 individual toilets that were built by the GHMC in Circle 10 B, seven unused toilets were handed over to the families to safeguard the dignity of women. On the eve of Raksha Bandhan, brothers inaugurated the toilets in the Panjagutta Bhobighat and Singada Basthi areas,” Mr Satyanarayana said.
Individual and community toilets are being built as part of the effort to make the city open defecation-free.
Open defecation is a major problem in areas such as Gajula Rama Ram, Macha Bollaram, Boudha Nagar, Bansilalpet, Ramgopalpet, Golkonda, Golnaka, Sanathnagar, Borabanda, Moosrambagh, Athapur, Bharathnagar, Balanagar, Boranda, and Hayathnagar, due to the lack of public toilets.
So far, the GHMC has identified 2034 households that need individual toilets. The construction of 1,486 of these toilets has been completed, and 548 are pending. The completed toilets have been geotagged in order to prevent irregularities and encroachments.
The government has also approved the construction of toilets for people who live in illegal constructions on nalas.
