Report before Karnataka High Court states fewer public toilets in Bangalore than Chennai, Hyderabad; BBMP directed to take steps for maintenance

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday directed Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to place on record the steps it has taken to improve the poor condition of public toilets in the city of Bengaluru..The order passed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Suraj Govindaraj reads, "BBMP must also state the steps taken by it to take care of issues highlighted in the said report especially issue regarding poor maintenance of community toilets.".Counsel for BBMP today informed the Court that a city sanitization report was prepared by an organisation called All India Institute of Local Self Government. The report did a study on the number of toilets present in the city and contained recommendations to improve the condition of public latrines and toilets in the State..During the hearing, the Court observed that the report did not ascertain the ward-wise requirement of privies and public toilets in the city. Nevertheless, the Court was rather keen to note that the report contained recommendations and key findings that would require immediate attention of the civic body."Poor maintenance of community toilets are also highlighted in the report and recommendations are made for making it accessible," the Court stated in its order..As per the Bench's reading of the report, compared to other cities like Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, the proportion of toilets available in Bangalore is low.The Court then directed BBMP to file an affidavit on these aspects by August 13..The Court was hearing a petition filed by city-based NGO Letzkit Foundation. The petitioner organisation raised concerns over the failure of the BBMP to set up the required number of public toilets and maintain existing toilets in a proper manner as per Section 245 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act.The petitioner further stated that as per the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) guidelines, there should be one water closet for every 100 males up to 400 persons; and two water closets for every 100 females up to 200 persons, to cater to the floating population. Also, one urinal is required to be set up for every 50 males as per SBM, apart from providing one ablution tap for every water closet..During the hearing, the BBMP counsel informed the Court that toilets in market areas should be identified, as such areas are thickly populated and may be unhygienic.Hearing this, the Court asked the counsel to place on record the civic body's plan of action in the matter.