Flyer complaints work wonders as Kolkata airport washrooms go for overhaul

KOLKATA: Flyers in Kolkata have for several years envied the chic toilets at airports in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru and craved for similar ones at the city airport. Authorities at the Kolkata airport have finally woken up to the need for better and smarter facilities and undertaken a major overhaul of all washrooms in the terminal. One toilet has already been revamped in the domestic departure security hold area while others near the boarding gates are undergoing the makeover.

“We are addressing flyers’ complaints about washrooms. Earlier, the washrooms near the departure gates were divided into sections for men and women. Hence, only passengers of either gender could use the facility at a time. That was inadequate as passengers tend to use the washroom just prior to departure. We are, therefore, dismantling the twin toilets and creating a larger toilet for one gender. The next pair of washrooms will be torn down and converted into a rest room for the other gender,” airport director Atul Dikshit told TOI.

The new remodelled washroom is spacious and fitted with advanced sanitaryware and accessories like the ones at major international airports. Even the wall tiles are more vibrant to give a cheerful feel. “The other washrooms will be upgraded in a phased manner,” the director said.


The security hold area in the domestic wing currently has 13 men’s and 12 women’s washrooms. All of them will be renovated in phases.

Apart from the sanitaryware and floor tiles, the authorities have also changed the design and signage of washrooms. As an addition, a separate place for Wazu (Islamic procedure for washing hands, mouth, nostrils, arms, head and feet with water prior to offering prayers) has also been placed in the new washrooms.

Dwaipayan Roy, a frequent flyer who had on several occasions complained about the poor maintenance of washrooms in social media, was pleasantly surprised when he walked into the new washroom. “The toilet looks great. A lot of thought has gone into developing it. I hope as much effort goes into maintaining it. Let’s keep the facility clean and non-smelly,” he said.

TOI has in the past reported on flyers’ complaints about ill-maintained toilets. The stained sanitaryware, smelly ambiance and wet floors came in for a lot of flak. In fact, it was the only issue that pulled down user rating at Kolkata airport. In recent months, passengers had also started tagging Kolkata airport authorities and civil aviation ministry officials to highlight the need for changing the toilets. While some posted photographs of soiled floors and stained sanitaryware, others complained about non-functional taps and lack of toilet paper.

The flurry of complaints forced the authorities to take up the urgent renovation work and also install emoji feedback machines outside the toilets asking commuters to rate their experience after every use. The machines placed near the doors of 10 out of 27 washrooms ask passengers to rate the cleanliness and have five separate buttons to rate their responses. SMS messages are sent from the machines to designated users, like airport manager and other AAI officials, for taking immediate corrective action on receipt of a negative rating.

After the renovation, positive reviews have begun to arrive on the airport’s Facebook page and Twitter handles. Bangalore-based software professional Kinsuk Bhattacharya posted on Twitter photographs of the renovated washroom and wrote: “Visiting Kolkata after six months and what a change. This is how washrooms should be in all airports. Just wish it stays this way.”