CHENNAI: Walking along platform 1 of the Guindy suburban railway station, one might spot a yellow and brick-red building at the far end. This facility is the sole ‘pay and use’ toilet at the station (on Chennai Beach-Chengalpattu route), which, as per Southern Railway estimates, gets an average daily footfall of over 60,000. However, upon getting closer to the facility, plastic waste, debris, old clothes, and empty liquor bottles lay out the red carpet.
TNIE took a train from Guindy to Tambaram and found that this was not a one-off case. Six stations on this route have toilets that are either locked or non-functional. Commuters have no other option but to depend on toilets in the Guindy metro station or the Guindy bus stop. Dhanalakshmi, who travels to Ramapuram daily for work, said, “It’s a long journey for me from Guindy to Chengalpattu. I mostly use the toilet in the bus stand.”
The station is distinctly located close to Anna University, IIT Madras, Guindy Race Club and the Guindy Industrial Estate. Shabana V, who runs a fancy store in the station, said she uses the metro toilet. She also noted that if requested, the station masters allow people operating shops in the station to use their washrooms. This was true at several other stations too.
Another woman shopkeeper at Chrompet station said, “There are many colleges in this area. It saddens me when girls ask me where the toilet is.” Two students said they usually visit their college toilets before leaving for the station. When asked, a railway official at the ticket booking office in Guindy said that a new toilet is under construction.
Meanwhile, the toilets at Palavanthangal, Minambakkam and Chrompet stations remain locked. Though the washrooms at St. Thomas Mount and Tambaram Sanatorium stations are open, the entry path is completely filled with trash. Harsh Jain, who travels regularly from Guindy to Palavathangal said, “We are able to manage somehow. But, this is a major issue for women.” Many men and even a few women were seen relieving themselves near the tracks.
On a positive note, Tirusulam and Pallavaram stations have well-maintained toilets. Repeated attempts to contact Southern Railways’ Chennai Division officials for a comment on the matter went in vain.