KOCHI: Though the district is heading towards Open Defecation Free(ODF) status in its rural areas, two of the colonies in Ernakulam are yet to achieve the goal. While all other districts in the state completed the construction of Individual Household Latrines(IHHL) adhering to the target, only Ernakulam has failed to achieve it.
According to the recent urban ODF programme review report which was released by Suchitwa Mission, Santhom Colony and Thanthonni Thuruthu are the two areas in the district, where the construction of 75 (16 in Santhom Colony and 59 in Thanthonni Thuruthu) bio-toilets are yet to be completed. According to the officials concerned, the reluctance of community members to switch to the toilets is the major reason for the delay.
However, the residents of these colonies said they are expecting the programme to be launched soon. “These temporary facilities constructed using sticks, hard boards, sacks and tin sheets are the toilets that we use at present. How long will we need to wait for the programme to be launched here?” asks Kumaran (name changed), a resident of Santhom Colony.
The number of families having individual toilets is quite less here. The people here are daily wage earners and hence don’t have money to build one. Due to lack of proper toilets, human waste gets washed into the backwaters. “Not just toilets, we also hope the authorities concerned will launch steps to ensure hygiene in the area. People living in flats are dumping their domestic waste here,” said Reshma, a mother of two children.
Meanwhile, in the case of Thanthonni Thuruthu, the lack of means to transport building materials is hindering the construction of toilets. Residents are also critical about the quality of construction work happening on the island. The construction of septic tanks is not easy since the land is marshy. The residents said many of the readymade septic tanks being laid are not new.
“The residents even engaged in heated arguments with the contract workers regarding the issue. We have doubts about the capacity of the bio-septic tanks, their chances of getting damaged due to salt water and the longevity of the constructions. We are not looking for temporary solutions. We expect proper supervision during the work. Most of us are fishermen, but that doesn’t mean officials can play a trick on us,” said Sajitha(name changed), a resident of the island.