What good is a public toilet if it can’t be used?

On the capital's Elephant Road stands a brand new public toilet, but not a single person has been able to use it since its inauguration on November 30. And so, pedestrians, shoppers, and local traders are still suffering amid the dearth of such facilities.

Over a few thousand people visit markets in the area regularly. Because there are no public toilets in sight, many resort to using toilets in mosques, while some use the ones inside markets, which are usually unhygienic.

Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) inaugurated the toilet, constructed at a cost of Tk 50 lakh in the presence of the DSCC mayor, local lawmakers, and councillors.

Adnan Hossain, a clothes seller at Elephant Road Market, said customers are having a hard time because the market toilets are not suitable for use.

Echoing Adnan, shopkeeper Rasel Mollah, said some people are suffering from health problems due to the toilet crisis.

Sufiya Begum, an employee at the market, said that men are using toilets at the market and nearby mosques, but those are unsafe and unhygienic for women. "The public toilet crisis is a big problem for us women."

Talking to this newspaper, Ferdous Alam, ward-18 councillor under DSCC, said the public toilet has not yet been opened due to delays centring the leasing process.

"DSCC's public toilets are usually operated through a tender and lease process, but the lease has not yet been finalised for this toilet," he said. "I don't know when the toilet will be opened for all."

Contacted, DSCC Chief State Officer Russell Sabrin also pointed to the leasing issue. "It will take 15 days to finalise the lease."

Adil Mohammed Khan, professor at Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Jahangirnagar University, emphasised the need to quickly open the toilet for use.

He suggested that the city corporation open the toilet under its own management, as there is a huge crisis of toilets in the city.