Toilet blues for rail commuters

MiD DAY finds lavatories at railway stations across the Western and Central network raise a stink; most urinals cannot be used and are the source of several diseases

Toilet blues for rail commuters

MiD DAY finds lavatories at railway stations across the Western and Central network raise a stink; most urinals cannot be used and are the source of several diseases

Travelling by train and need to answer nature's call? Well, you are in for some bad luck as MiD DAY found out that most of the railway stations have no proper facility of a toilet and if the station does have a restroom, there is a 90 per cent chance that you will need to hold your breath because of the foul odour the restroom emits.

According to figures, 70 lakh passengers travel on the central and western railway. Out of this, around 3 lakh passengers (male and female) use the toilets at railway stations.

However, several passengers complained that the condition of the lavatories is below hygienic standards and mostly it is almost impossible to use the lavatories.

Woeful situation

If the situation wasn't already bad, there is some more bad news for women.
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According to a survey conducted by Observe India Foundation (ORF), only 17 per cent of the total number of restrooms are meant for female commuters.

Out of this, 93 per cent of the lavatories are either locked or out of use. "It's a very shameful fact that the city, which gave birth to the railways has such sub-standard sanitation facilities.

The state of the lavatories are awful and in the report there is evidence that women are contracting more diseases because of the poor standards, said Sudheendra Kulkarni, chairman of ORF.

He added that woman commuters had six times more chances of contracting urinary tract infections.

Confirming the same, Dr J B Bhawani, head of the urology department at JJ Hospital said, "Controlling the passage of urine once in a while is not dangerous but people who regularly control urination have a high possibility of developing stones and urinary tract infections.
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Nearly 15-20 per cent of women suffer from urinary tract infections." Many of the lavatories at the station were found locked, while a few of them were under renovation. Also, most of the lavatories did not provide water.

Money matters

An RTI query has revealed that in the year 2008-2009, the Central Railways was provided Rs 14 lakh for passenger amenities.

However, it was learnt that not a single penny was spent on maintaining existing lavatories or building new ones.u00a0

Similarly, the Western Railway was provided Rs 1.47 crore in the year 2006-2007 but again the situation was the same.
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Officials claim that the poor condition of lavatories and passenger amenities could be attributed to poor accounting and budgeting.

When MiD DAY contacted the Railways to comment on the deplorable condition of the urinals, Vineet Kumar, Deputy General Manager (CR), said, "Our focus is already on cleanliness of toilets.

We have personnel who ensure that the toilets are well maintained. We also have the pay-and-use-system. Additionally, station masters have been granted permission to have the toilets cleaned."
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Similarly, Girish Pillai, (WR), said, " We are in the process of constructing new toilets and ensuring that all toilets are cleaned."

Rs 14 lakh
The amount allocated by the Central Railway for issues related to sanitation in the year 2008-2009

Did you know?
At railway stations, attendants in the lavatories are not supposed to charge a user for using the urinal and the charge for defecation is only Rs 2.

Condition of urinals

Good urinals: Churchgate, Khar Road, Mumbai CST, Byculla, Thane, Kalwa, Mulund, Currey Road

Badly maintained urinals: Mumbai Central (foul odour), Mahalaxmi (human excreta and paan stains on the walls), Dadar (foul odour), Bandra (foul odour), Kandivli (paan stains spattered on the walls), Sandhurst Road (there was a hole in the door. It was unclean with stains all over the door and toilet), Vidya Vihar (dirtiest toilet on the central line with human excreta in
the toilet)

No urinal in sight: Grant Road (locked), Lower Parel (locked), Santacruz (under renovation), Andheri (no urinal), Borivli (no urinal), Chinchpokli (locked), Nahur (man has been living inside the toilet and stores his belongings there).

Vidya Vihar: The dirtiest toilet on the Central line with human excreta in the toilet.
Mahalaxmi: Human excreta and paan stains on the walls (Western Railway)

The Campaign
MiD DAY has begun a campaign to stand up for airline passengers facing regular issues like lost, delayed or damaged baggage. If you happen to be a victim or know anyone who has been one, please send
in your story to MiD DAY at inandout@mid-day.com

Voices

The toilets at the railway stations are in a deplorable condition and female commuters find it difficult to use the toilets. We pay money for travelling and the Railways should ensure essential needs like toilets at stations.u00a0
Sakshi Parab, Thane

I usually use the toilets at the station because I am in the field of marketing and have to travel from one place to another. I find it difficult to use the toilets at stations but I have to use it in times of need.u00a0
Bhavya Rajput, Vasai Road

Owing to the foul odour emitted at the toilets many commuters contract diseases.
The railway authorities should have no right to play with our health.
Parshvi Tripathi, Kalyan