Wednesday, 18 September 2024 | Mansi Bhambri | DEHRADUN
Despite the presence of smart city toilets in Paltan Bazaar, it is being observed that both locals and shopkeepers are still relieving themselves in the corners of the market. When asked why they were not using the smart toilets, some shopkeepers ascribed this to the distance to such toilets from their shops and the charges involved in using them.
Taking note of this, the president of the Doon Valley Mahanagar Udyog Vyapar Mandal (DVMUVM) Pankaj Mason said that the number of toilets should be increased and located at the centre of the market. “This is the only way to motivate the traders to use the smart toilets in the market area,” he said.
Currently, three toilets are operational at the market, but their inconvenient locations and fee-based usage are keeping their potential users away.
While talking to The Pioneer, a garment shop owner Sandeep Agarwal said that despite the presence of smart toilets in the market area, he and those who work for him are still choosing corners in case of emergencies. “We want to use the newly set up toilets as we are keen to uphold hygienic standards of the old market we are associated with for generations. But the usage charges are making us cling to the traditional way of relieving ourselves. Honestly, my helpers and I can hardly afford to pay every time we use a toilet,” he said.
Further, he cited the distant location of the toilets as a dampening factor. “How can I walk such a long distance, leaving the customers behind? This is not feasible,” he said. He requested the administration to consider offering free access to toilets for the shopkeepers and their helpers in the market area. “Besides, their locations should be convenient for us,” he added.
A footwear shop worker Vijay Yadav said that he had used the smart toilets at the market hardly twice or thrice since these were set up. “I cannot afford the charge and second, its considerable distance from the shop I work for is forcing me to continue relieving myself at corners. These should be centrally located and their usage should be made free,” he added.
When told about what the shopkeepers and their helpers have said about their reluctance to use the smart toilets, Mason said that he understood their predicament and was in empathy with them. “I know it is not good to shun toilets and continue soiling the streets. But I must admit at the same time that paying a charge every time one uses such toilets-and the charge is not small-is truly prohibitive. Besides, can we expect them to take pains to walk to the distantly located toilets when there are easier means available? The administration should sympathetically consider their demands. Besides, it should organise awareness programmes in the market area on hygiene and the importance of maintaining it for the health of one and all,” he said.
