Citizen Connect: Sans maintenance, Kamaraja Nagar residents disown ‘Namma Toilet’

Located along the river side, the toilet on the road near the bridge across Cooum river was constructed at a cost of Rs 15 lakh. It was inaugurated on November 24, 2016, by Avadi MLA and State Minister K Pandiarajan in the presence of the then district collector of Tiruvallur, E Sundaravalli and Municipality Commissioner PMN Mujibeer Rahman.

But now, more than two years on, the toilet is standing there gathering dust as the water connection has been severed. When DT Next spoke to residents in the locality, they expressed their discontent.

“The toilet was in usable condition only for the first few months. Over the months, the water supply was stopped and the cleaner stopped coming. Now, only a few construction workers from north India who have settled here are using the toilet. But they bring water with them,” said a woman on condition of anonymity.

When contacted, officials with the grievances cell of the Municipality said that they have not received any complaints about the toilet so far. They added that residents of the particular ward can send the photos of the toilet through WhatsApp application to the phone number 9884255109.

Once the complaint reached them, it would be forwarded to the sanitary inspector concerned and the problem would be resolved within two to three days, officials said.

They added that people can visit the Avadi Municipality office in person and meet the sanitary inspector to convey the grievance. This would ensure that their complaints were  redressed without delay.