Officials say cost of repairing Bhandup’s old toilets is 45 per cent more than that of reconstruction
The toilets are in S ward, Bhandup. Representation pic/Satej Shinde
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will demolish and reconstruct 30 dangerous public toilets in Bhandup at a cost of Rs 68 lakh each. The proposal for the same is pegged at over Rs 20.3 crore and will be tabled in the standing committee meeting to be held on Tuesday. Interestingly, the civic body is demolishing these toilets because the cost of repairing them is 45 per cent more than complete reconstruction, as per the proposal.
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Audit of toilets
Following a community toilet collapse in Bhandup in 2018, where two people had died, the BMC’s S ward officials had conducted a structural audit of its 94 toilets (each toilet has about five seats) across the ward. Of the 94 toilets, 19 are in the defect liability period and being maintained by a contractor, while nine toilets were termed as extremely dangerous and demolished immediately after the incident. Of the 66 toilets in C-2A, C-2B, C-2C category (extremely dangerous needing reconstruction; needing major repairs; and needing minor repairs), the cost of repairing 43 toilets is 45 per cent more than that of the construction, as claimed by the BMC. The proposal is about reconstructing 30 of the 43 toilets first. Interestingly, as the cost of repairing the remaining 23 toilets is less than that of construction, the BMC has said they will be repaired.
Another proposal
“There are dangerous toilets in many places in the slum areas of Mumbai and citizens are still using them. If these toilets are not repaired or rebuilt in time, accidents can occur and cause loss of life. In addition to renovating the toilets, the contractor will also have to clean the septic tanks that are full and give off a foul odour. The proposal will come up for approval in the next meeting of the Standing Committee,” said a civic official. However, the average cost of Rs 68 lakh for the construction of a toilet seems to be high, and is likely to face serious opposition, revealed civic sources.
Rs 68 lakh
Cost to demolish and reconstruct one toilet
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