23% unfit for use; some turn home for caretakers; women use men’s toilets in MCC Wards 25, 49 

Mysuru: Despite being one of India’s preferred tourist destinations, Mysuru continues to struggle with inadequate public sanitation facilities. 

While public toilets have been constructed at several locations, poor maintenance has rendered many of them unusable. Some have even been converted into living quarters by caretakers. 

A survey conducted by the Centre for Study of Social Inclusion (CSSI), University of Mysore (UoM), has highlighted the poor condition of public toilets. The study, led by CSSI Associate Professor D.C. Nanjunda, covered 38 of the 46 public toilets maintained by the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC). 

The survey found that only 26 percent of the toilets were in good condition, while 49 percent were rated as average. The remaining 25 percent were found to be in a deplorable state. 

A vendor selling vegetables in front of a public toilet near K.R. Hospital as one person enters the toilet to relieve himself.

The team also uncovered several irregularities. At one public toilet, the facility had been converted into a living room with a cot, while caretakers were found using the premises for cooking and sleeping. 

The survey further noted that some caretakers were under the influence of alcohol during working hours. In another instance, a man had been appointed as caretaker of a ‘Pink Toilet,’ a facility meant exclusively for women. 

Speaking to Star of Mysore, Prof. Nanjunda said, “Thirty of the city’s 65 Wards do not have public toilets. Only about 53 percent of the toilets are equipped with sanitary pad dispensers or incinerators. Most toilets do not provide liquid soap for handwashing. In most of the cases, the foul smell is so unbearable that people have to cover their noses before entering.” 

The survey also found that in Wards 25 and 49, women were using toilets meant for men due to the absence of separate facilities. It further noted that a public toilet constructed nearly a year ago at Gandabherunda Park in Ward 57, Kuvempunagar, is yet to be opened for public use. Similar is the fate of another public toilet in Manchegowdanakoppal. 

‘People are reluctant to pay Rs. 2’ 

Responding to the survey findings, MCC Commissioner Shaikh Tanveer Asif said that many people are reluctant to pay the nominal user fee of Rs. 2 or Rs. 3 and instead resort to open urination or defecation. 

“To address this issue, an open-access public toilet has been constructed at the Town Hall premises in association with an NGO. However, many users are unwilling to pay even the nominal fee, which has created operational challenges,” he said. 

The Commissioner added that the Corporation would examine the issues highlighted in the survey and take steps to improve the maintenance and upkeep of public toilets across the city.