HYDERABAD: Soon, the city will have as many as 178 swank loo cafes that the public can use for free. And if that’s not all, these cafe-cumwashrooms, apart from the eateries, will be equipped with air conditioning, napkin vending machines, kids diaper changing rooms, water ATMs (water kiosks), ATM machines and free
Wi-Fi. Each cafe will have three washrooms — one each for men, women and the physically challenged.
“People can use the
luxury washrooms free of cost. They’ll have to pay for the food that they purchase at the cafes that will be built on a space of up to 15 feet X 25 feet,” said Koteswara Rao superintending engineer with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation’s (GHMC) solid waste management wing.
Set to come up in the six GHMC zones — Serilingampally (30),
Kukatpally (22), Khairatabad (36), LB Nagar
(30), Secunderabad (30) and Charminar (30) — authorities said that these upscale loo cafes will be built on a Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) mode. Tenders for the project have already been invited and as per the contract the agency appointed will need to build them within a time-frame of three months.
The time-period of their contract will be 10 years.
“We had initially decided to make the washroom facility free only for women and children, and those to buy goods of Rs 20 or more at the café. For the rest, we were supposed to charge a free of Rs 5. Later, we revised this and made it free for everyone,” said Koteswara Rao.
