Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s (NMC) move to install smart toilets in the city hit a roadblock because Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) are not issuing No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) for the same.
As a consequence, Municipal Commissioner Abhijieet Chaudhari’s dream project of installing 36 smart toilets in different parts of the city needs to be modified. Now, the Municipal Corporation will construct 25 smart toilets on roads owned by it, said NMC Chief Engineer Rajiv Gaikwad. The cost for building 25 smart toilets is Rs 16.50 crore. A tender to construct the toilets has been floated and by mid of January, the bid is likely to be finalised, added Gaikwad.
It is not the first time the NMC faced hurdles in constructing public toilets. Recently, the Nagpur Smart and Sustainable City Development Corporation (NSSCDCL) had blacklisted Kerala-based ERAM Scientific Solutions Private Limited for failing to install state-of-the-art smart e-toilets.
On July 26, 2022, the NSSCDCL awarded the work of installing 100 toilets at a cost of Rs 8.38 crore to the Kerala firm, which was tasked with the job of installing the units in nine months and maintaining them as well. Of the allotted work, the agency could install only 12 units (six each for women and men). As a consequence, the project was dropped altogether as the agency backed out midway.
NMC data reveals that the city has 64 public toilets. With 18, Gandhibagh zone — a well-known commercial hub — has the highest number of public toilets, followed by 14 in Dharampeth zone. The Laxmi Nagar zone has only one public toilet, Lakadganj has 2, while Hanuman Nagar, Nehru Nagar and Mangalwari zones have three each. Seven each were installed at Dhantoli and Satranjipura zones.
The demand for public toilets can also be gauged from the fact that in last calendar year the NMC’s Nuisance Detection Squad had penalised 84 people for peeing in the open and recovered a fine of Rs 42,000.
Meanwhile, a public toilet on the premises of the Regional Transport Office of Nagpur city off Amravati Road has been closed for over a year now. Hundreds of visitors, especially women, face inconvenience due to its closure.
