BANGALORE: Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has been often blamed for their lackadaisical attitude towards building more toilets in the city.
However, in case of Jayanagar 4th T Block, it is not the law enforcement officials who are to be blamed, but the public themselves. Despite a BBMP ‘pay and use’ toilet being constructed for the public, it is a common scene to see people urinating on the street nearby and behind the vacant property belonging to Tilaknagar Police Station. The caretaker of the BBMP toilet in this locality, Ashok Kumar said, “I am tired of telling people to use this toilet and not to litter the road. Almost 90 per cent of the people urinate on this road. All they have to do is pay `1. Its not only the uneducated people, but even the educated class who lack civic sense.”
Behind this ugly scene, there is an educational institution named Carmel Convent Girls School. A parent said, “At least people should think about the school children here, before indulging in such acts. Such situations are embarrassing to us and our children.”
The locality also suffers from parking woes. The caretaker of the BBMP toilet said, “Throughout the day, vehicles are parked on the road. Nobody has complained or bothered to clear the mess.” When City Express contacted the Joint Commissioner of South Zone, Hemchandra, he said, “We were not aware of the situation. Since I have been informed now, I will take action. We will put up boards and if that does not help, we will not hesitate to take stringent action.”
Voicing a similar opinion, Corporator C K Ramamurthy said, “This is a serious issue. I will talk to my officials and sort it out.”
Recently, Deputy Mayor, BBMP, S Harish asked the citizens to take photographs of people urinating in public places and upload it in a website, so that offenders can be slapped with a fine. However, despite such statements, the menace has not come to an end in the city.