BENGALURU: A Bengaluru sub-inspector whose dedication to social causes was earlier lauded by social media is currently on a tireless pursuit to build comfort stations at Goragunttepalya Junction on the Bengaluru-Tumakuru highway opposite the Taj Vivanta considered the gateway to over 25 districts of North Karnataka and also to many other states.
The sub-inspector Shanthappa Jademmanavar is presently attached to the Vidhana Soudha police station. He wants to build comfort stations at Goragunttepalya Junction for the sake of women who were put through a lot of hardship due to the absence of a comfort station. The fact that he was unable to help his mother once when she wanted to go to the toilet was what has triggered the idea in Shanthappa of building a comfort station at the junction
Speaking to TNIE, Shanthappa Jademmanavar, said that he is from a family of migrant labourers and has seen the difficulties faced by women. The idea to build comfort stations struck him when his mother wanted to go to the toilet at the same Junction when they were waiting to catch a bus to their native village near Bellari. Being helpless to take his mother to the toilet as there were no public toilets there, he decided that no woman should face the same problem that his mother faced.
He tried to utilise Twitter to collect funds for his project of building the comfort stations. He relentlessly tagged the local MLA R Munirathna, who is also the minister for horticulture besides other civic officials with a request to help him with the funds to carry out the project. Despite 50 days of his nonstop effort, there has been no response to his request. Finally, he decided to set up a portable toilet on his own. He spent from his pocket for the portable toilet and was about to throw it open to the public recently. However, he was forced to refrain from launching the facility because of what he terms "unwanted calls from various sections."
"I decided to set up a portable toilet at my own expense but had to give up due to some issues which I do not want to make public. I am doing my bit, finally, it is the local civic authorities or the MLA who has to execute it," he noted.
"I will keep requesting through social media to help me build the toilets. Being in the police department, all I can do is request. After my aged mother asked me to take her to the toilet, I was so helpless as there were no public toilets. I do not want any other woman to face the issue."
Jademmanavar is a 2016 batch civil police sub-inspector. He hails from a remote village in Bellari. He is a science graduate. He has previously worked in Ashoknagar and AP Nagar police stations.
"I will keep requesting through social media to help me build the toilets. Being in the police department, all I can do is request. After my aged mother asked me to take her to the toilet, I was so helpless as there were no public toilets. I do not want any other woman to face the issue," he reiterated
Earlier, it was in the year 2020 when Shanthappa was posted at the Annapurneswari Nagar station that he earned a lot of praise on social media for teaching a group of migrant workers children who were unable to attend online classes.