Insufficient public toilets for over one crore city residents pose health risks

An appalling lack of sufficient public toilets in the capital poses increasing health risks to the city’s over one crore residents.

The capital under two city corporations has only 146 public toilet facilities, which experts believe are terribly insufficient for such a large population and contribute to different health problems.

City commuters, particularly women, who frequently avoid drinking enough water and retain urine fearing that they will not find usable toilets, are at particular risk of contracting diseases, including urinary tract and kidney infections.

Meanwhile, many men urinate in the open, exposing others to diarrhoea, hepatitis, typhoid, and other diseases.

Additionally, often public toilets are located near secondary transfer garbage stations, increasing the risk of spreading communicable diseases, while discouraging many from using the facilities.

Of the 70 public toilets under the Dhaka South City Corporation, 52 are currently in operation, managed by non-governmental organisations, including Water Aid, the DSCC itself, market associations, or lessees, serving its around 43 lakh residents.

The rest 18 are either abandoned, closed, under construction, or undergoing renovation, the data show.

Meanwhile, the Dhaka North City Corporation provides a total of 94 public toilets for its nearly 60 lakh residents, with 23 currently operated by NGOs.

The draft Dhaka Structure Plan 2016-2035 prepared under the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha mentions that the capital is a high-mobility city due to its high population density, and also because a large number of people commuting to and from the peri-urban areas outside the capital.

According to the draft plan, within the 1528 sq km area centering the Dhaka metropolitan city, nearly 21 million trips take place on an average on any working day.

In a megacity, one toilet per 2,000 residents is standard. Experts said as we have limitations, we can build a toilet for 5,000 residents. As per this estimation, the city requires more than 2,400 toilets.

Experts also suggested that city authorities can partner with private establishments, such as mosques and shopping malls, to make some of their existing toilets accessible to the public, following a well-structured plan.

We believe the city authorities should keep the emphasis on increasing public toilets, ensuring accessibility of mosque and market toilets for all, and ensuring the cleanliness of the facilities, thus city dwellers can have a good experience and stay off the major health risks.