BENGALURU: A 31-year-old police sub-inspector, along with a team of police constables working in different police stations across the city, celebrated the Labour Day by cleaning public toilets. He is the same police officer who started an online campaign to build public toilets after his mother struggled to find a toilet when they were waiting to board a bus to Ballari.
Shanthappa Jademmanavar, who is from a family of migrant labourers, has also started an online campaign for public toilets at Goraguntepalya junction on Tumakuru Road near Taj Vivanta in Yeshwanthpur. The team of policemen also remembered late IPS officer Madhukar Shetty, during whose tenure they were selected to the force.
The SI, attached to the Vidhana Soudha police station, cleaned the toilets along with five police constables working at Basaveshwaranagar, Annapurneshwarinagar and other police stations. On Monday, the team cleaned two public toilets — at Sumanahalli and Kengunte in Annapurneshwarinagar. The video of the SI cleaning the toilet has gone viral. “After I started the online campaign for building public toilets, these five police constables contacted me in support of the campaign.
As I am from a family of migrant labourers, I personally know the difficulties in finding public toilets. Even if there are public toilets, they will not be properly maintained which causes serious health issues. So to begin with, I thought of cleaning two public toilets which are used by a large number of people,” Jademmanavar told TNIE. The policemen carry phenyl bottles and use brushes available at the public toilets. Jademmanavar plans to clean public toilets once every month. The police officer is continuously putting out requests for toilets by tagging local MLA R Munirathna, who is also the Minister of Horticulture, and other civic officials concerned.
Despite his nonstop effort, there was no response from the government. Finally, he decided to set up a portable toilet on his own and wanted it to be thrown open to the public, but went back on his decision due to pressure from various sections of society.
Jademmanavar said he wants a toilet at Goraguntepalya junction on Tumakuru Road, where his elderly mother wanted to go to the toilet, but could not find one. He does not want any other woman to face the same problem. Jademmanavar hails from a village in Ballari. A science graduate, he previously worked at Ashoknagar and AP Nagar police stations.