Kolkata: Commuters can finally hope for relief if they need to suddenly use the washroom while travelling along the 15-km EM Bypass. KMC has decided to set up nine pay-and-use toilets between Ultadanga and Garia along the Bypass to meet the long-pending demand of commuters.
The civic authorities also have plans to set up pay-and-use toilets exclusively for women, with proper wash basins, handwash, mirrors and changing rooms. Replying to a proposal placed during the KMC House meeting for a pay-and-use toilet on the stretch between the Avishikta Crossing and Safuipara More off EM Bypass in KMC Ward 106, KMC MMiC (environment & heritage) Swapan Samaddar said that the civic authorities already conducted a survey of the area to determine where the new pay-and-use toilets could be built.
"Plans have been made to construct nine pay-and-use toilets in different places along EM Bypass from Ultadanga to Garia," Samaddar said.
Residents said that the pay-and-use toilets would be of immense convenience for commuters as there was no such facility on the 15km stretch. An IT firm employee, Siddhartha Sen, said, "Currently, there isn't a single pay-and-use toilet on the stretch from Avishikta to Ajoy Nagar. If the civic body constructs a toilet near Avishikta Crossing, many people will find it convenient," said Sen, who uses the road every day to go to work from his Kalikapur home.
Jayati Haldar, a resident of VIP Nagar, said, "If the KMC constructs nine toilets along the Bypass, this will be helpful for working women, like me. The civic body should also focus on keeping the toilets clean," Haldar said.
KMC authorities have recently been working on plans to refurbish and revamp around 100 pay-and-use toilets across the city that are in a dilapidated condition. "There are a number of pay-and-use toilets, which are in a shambles and not in a proper condition for use. About 100 such old facilities are going to be revamped for the public's convenience," said a civic official. At present there are around 300 pay-and-use toilets across the city.