JUMLA, May 8: As the government's 'one home, one toilet' campaign is going on full swing in the remote parts of various districts, some might find it hard to believe that there is just one toilet for an entire community in Khalanga, the district headquarters of Jumla.
There is only one toilet in Kalikholi Kami Tole of Khalanga. As a result, people of this community are compelled to queue up for defecation, said Gyan Bahadur BK, a local. People neither have toilets in their homes nor enough space for constructing toilets. "We have to wake up early in the morning to get a chance to defecate in the toilet," said BK, adding," It becomes a real trouble when we are suffering from diarrhea."
A Dalit caste’s struggle for toilet
Altogether 60 households of Kami Tole are relying on the same toilet. "Though the government has spent a large amount of money on drinking water and sanitation, we are still struggling for a proper toilet," said another local Chandra Lal Sunar. He stressed that the authorities concerned should build a large-size public toilet which can be used by five to seven people at a time.
As these Dalit people cannot afford to construct separate toilets, they are using a small toilet constructed by the Municipality. “It's quiet embarrassing to wait in queue for defecation but we have no other option," laments Sunar. But they keep wondering how the district attained an Open Defecation Free (ODF) status when a whole community is relying on a single toilet.
In order to solve the problem of these Dalit people of Kalikholi, Chandannath Municipality is reconstructing the toilet. The construction of a modern toilet is in its final stage. As informed by Ward Chief Arjun Singh Kathayat, this well facilitated toilet is being constructed with a budget of Rs. 1 million. A solar panel will be installed at the toilet that will endsure hot and cold water and will also have separate bathrooms for men and women. The municipality will make it sure that the toilet is child- and disabled-friendly.
It has been a real trouble for the locals here as the only toilet they were using is being reconstructed, according to Gyan Bahadur Bishwakarma, chairperson of the consumers committee. After the construction of the toilet, 60 households of Kami Tole can use the toilet for free but people outside of the community will have to pay a certain amount of money.
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