A public toilet at Samachar Market is clogged and reeking to the high heavens, making life miserable for marketgoers and shopkeepers.
A public toilet at Samachar Market in Mayur Vihar Phase I Extension, rather than being a convenience, has become a botheration to people of the area. The toilet is clogged and stinking, making day-to-day business at the market unbearable for shoppers and shopkeepers alike.
Surprisingly, the public toilet was set up barely two months back by East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
Samachar Market, mostly visited by residents of housing societies in the area, was facilitated with a public toilet in February. The area already had another public toilet when this one was constructed. The old one was not being used owing to poor upkeep. Now the new one has also met the same fate.
“It is easy to construct public toilets by spending public money or under corporate social responsibility [CSR] funds," said Shrikant Sharma, a resident of Kala Vihar Apartments and a frequent marketgoer. "The real challenge is in maintaining them.”
This newly built public toilet has five urinals — one for the physically challenged, two for women and two for men. Another public toilet in Mayur Vihar Phase I Extension, which was inaugurated by M Venkaiah Naidu, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, in April 2016, was found to be in the same condition.
Pawan Vasudev, president of Mayur Vihar CGHS federation, said, “There is no water in the taps. Some taps are even missing and the toilets are clogged. The situation is so bad that one can see a pool of urine in front of the market complex all the time."
When City Spidey contacted Sandhya Verma, the present municipal councillor, she had a rather lame excuse to offer. “There are many projects that have been started in a hurry," said Verma. "The toilets need water tanks and permanent water supply, which are yet to be done."
