Hyderabad: Meet Sumithra. A fellow Hyderabadi. Unlike all of us, she has a secret, a shameful secret.
Unlike millions of her fellow citizens, Sumithra, who is in her sixties, does not have a toilet. She waits all day for sunset before she can defecate... in the open.
The Naubat Pahad is the collective defecation point for her and many others like her.
Over 70 families are still suffering, in the heart of the city, the indignity of having to defecate in the open. Children of lesser gods… maybe even lesser humans.
They are residents of Sanjay Gandhi Nagar, earlier known as Kodi Gudisalu, located around Naubat Pahad, which is not in some forsaken nook of the state but is just a stone’s throw away from the Telangana State Assembly, the spanking new State Secretariat costing multiple hundreds of crores, the New MLA quarters. It is surrounded by some of the most eminent structures and monuments of the state’s pride, as well as areas in which the most powerful and elite people of the state reside.
Yet, in this dark island of shame, many women say that on rainy days, they miss their meal so that they can skip nature’s call. Most of these residents either work as domestic helps or do daily-wage jobs.
Sumithra, who fell down and fractured her leg some time ago while going up the hill to relieve herself in the dark, told Deccan Chronicle, with a sad sense of shame, “We, the women of our area, have relieve ourselves only at night or before sunrise. This place is slippery and I fell down and broke my leg. What to do… this is our fate. When I was a small child, there was no development here. The city has developed so much… but we are still in the same dark times. Everywhere around here is an open defecation area.”
The residents said that in earlier times, there used to be a lot of open places. “This place used to have many wild bushes. But now, almost everywhere around is a new building. Adjacent to our colony is the Birla Planetarium, which has fixed CCTV along the wall. It makes it hard for us to go,” she said, almost sobbing.
Anuradha, another resident, said, “I have small children. We cry if we have to relieve ourselves during the day. There are apartments in the surrounding areas… if we ladies go in the open, those people open their windows and stare. We wait for some time, waiting for them to go away. If they don’t leave, we come back home without doing it.”
Metara Ratnaiah said, “We are the unwanted section of society. No one in the government cares for us. No GHMC personnel will visit our place. We have requested the municipal people to cut down those tree branches which are falling because of rains… as they can cause injuries. No one listens to our appeal.”
When asked why they were not getting toilets, she answered, “We have given many representations for toilets for many years, but there is no response. We are getting old now… we don’t know if and when we will get respite. Or a proper toilet.”
While they have lived with the problem, and indifference of the MA&UD agencies and officials, the onset of monsoon brings a bigger dimension to the shame. Entire households with women have to prepare to carry along an umbrella, or wear a raincoat, while having to go out to defecate in the open.
Vinoda, and over a hundred ladies in her locality, told Deccan Chronicle that they skip meals whenever the clouds appear. This is not owing to any ritual or tradition but to ensure they can avoid having to go to relieve themselves.
The families had tears in their eyes as they narrated how they could watch the grandeur of the recently concluded celebrations to mark ten years of Telangana’s formation, wondering why they were so untouched by development.
They barely were able to understand the official apathy that denies them toilets. Though three years ago some public toilets were constructed, the work was not complete and no connection given, leaving the brick structures to just lie waste.
The authorities have fenced the area with barbed wire, preventing them from using that place. These hillocks, which make the city look so beautiful in drone shots and bag international awards for Hyderabad, leave residents unable to understand why their misery has no cure.
Padma, another resident, said that several women had slipped from the hillocks and got hurt while going to defecate in the open at night.
Munugala Lakshman said, “This place has had many problems since time immemorial. Several politicians come, pretend to listen to our concerns and go away. But no one has ever shown an interest in solving our problems. There are insects all over this place. The unbearable stink of open defecation remains all over this place. When we reach out to officials, they say the file is under process.”
Sangeetha, a resident, said, “We are surrounded by wealthy and powerful people’s houses. When these common toilets were constructed, there were some people who raised objections. When, last November, some toilets got constructed, there was no pipeline connected to it. Now, these toilets are closed and are of no use. The rich people around cannot tolerate our existence here.”
Saritha said, “I came here as a bride long ago. The absence of a toilet has been the biggest challenge and shame for all of my life. We have adjusted to this life, with hope. We used to think some change would come, but now not a ray of hope. Not even criminals in jail suffer like us.”
When contacted, an official said, “The file reached here some time ago. Soon, the scrutiny and other assessment works will be done.”
Till then, Sumithra and her sisters of ill-fate, are forced to continue to live in shame. Waiting for sunset. And afraid of the rain.
