Ukkadam lake project workers forced to relieve in open

Coimbatore: Beautification and rejuvenation of lakes in the city is among several ambitious projects of the corporation, but the living conditions of the workers involved in these projects leaves much to be desired.
Workers involved in the rejuvenation project at Ukkadam Periyakulam in the city said they do not have access to toilet facilities and are forced to defecate in the open, along the lake bund every day.
The quick-win component of the lake project - beautificatication of Northern bund of the lake along Perur byepass road - was inaugurated only a month ago by the chief minister. The corporation that has been pulling out all stops to beautify the lake, seems to have forgotten about basic sanitation facilities needed for workers involved in the project.
A 58-year-old worker, part of the project for the past 45 days, is living along with his family at a temporary shelter near the lake without any toilet facilities. “We wake up before 5am when it is still dark to use the lake bund for our sanitation needs. If we get up late, then we have to walk over a kilometre to use the public toilet near Ukkadam bus stand. We have to pay Rs 5 every time we use the toilet,” he said.
All the workers at the project site concur that toilet facilities are needed. “The situation becomes difficult during working hours. While men relieve themselves along the bund without giving a second thought to privacy, women cannot,” said a 50-year-old woman labourer at the site.
There is a toilet near the office room of the project site, she said, but it needs requesting the security guard’s permission. “Worse, we are prohibited from using toilets that have been constructed for the general public,” she said.
The open defecation has also invited the ire of local residents. “When we informed our higher-ups about the need for toilets, they assured to make alternative arrangements later as they cannot construct a toilet due to practical difficulties in times of Covid-19,” he added.
A Loganathan, a commuter, said he is wary that workers at the site are forced to defecate in the open. “What is the point of scolding the workers? Isn’t it the responsibility of the corporation to fulfil their basic requirement of a toilet?”
When contacted, corporation commissioner J Sravan Kumar said he will instruct the contractor to take necessary action on the issue.