Kesari, Sangli: Inauguration of Toilet Blocks

The toilet projects implemented by the SMKMC, Shelter Associates and Baandhani on a pay and use basis in the slums of Sangli and Miraj will be inaugurated by the Mayor Vijay Dhulubulu and the MLA Madan Patil according to the Deputy Commissioner Gajanan Ghate and the director of Shelter Associates Pratima Joshi.

Earlier SA/Baandhani had conducted a survey of all the settlements. Of the 99 settlements that were surveyed, 78 had no toilet facilities. The women of both the settlements of Sangliwadi and Tasgaon Ves prioritized sanitary blocks which led to this pilot project. The women of both the settlements of Sangliwadi and Tasgaon Ves prioritized sanitary blocks which led to this pilot project. Credibility and quality were emphasized and in order to achieve this the usual time consuming bureaucratic delays associated with inviting tenders was avoided and the work was awarded to a local NGO -Shivsadan who completed the construction work within 3 months.

The Sangliwadi toilet block has 12 seats while the one at Miraj has 14. They are 'pay and use' toilets. A biogas plant has been fitted in Sangliwadi where there is no access to city sewers whereas the Tasgaon ves toilet is directly connected to the city sewers. The toilets maintained by the communities who will appoint a caretaker.

The other members who were present for this press conference were the Deputy Commissioner PD Kamble, Dr. Nirmala Pandit, Vittal Joglekar, SMKMC officer Chandrakant Sonawane etc.