50-seater toilet facility at Cutbona jetty nears completion

Nida.SayedPanaji: The fisheries department is set to complete the construction of a 50-seater toilet-cum-bathroom facility at the new fishing jetty in Cutbona by the end of this month. The project, undertaken by Sulabh International Social Service Organisation, Porvorim, is being built at a cost of Rs 95 lakh.
The previous deadline for completion was before the end of March; however, they requested an extension, said Yashaswini B, who is holding additional charge as fisheries director. “We have granted the extension to them. We are hoping that the toilets are completed soon as we have given them a timeline to finish the works by this month,” she told TOI.
The Cutbona fishing jetty houses over 200 fishing trawlers, with at least 4,000 migrant labourers docking vessels in and out of the jetty on a daily basis. The lone Sulabh toilet block is the only existing facility for the migrant workers to relieve themselves, due to which the surrounding areas of the jetty have been plagued with the issue of open urination.
Last year, the jetty faced a cholera outbreak where workers of 27 trawlers at Cutbona jetty and eight trawlers at Mobor were affected. Most of the patients were from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha. The outbreak resulted in the death of five migrant workers, two of whom were brought dead to hospital.
The outbreak was linked to overcrowding on the trawlers, coupled with unhygienic conditions at the jetty. To address the issue, the authorities then set up 30 bio toilets at Cutbona. “These portable toilets were hardly used after the cholera outbreak subsided,” former president of the Cutbona Boat Owners Union, Savio D’Silva, said.
“We are looking forward to the inauguration of the 50 toilets, but cleanliness is also required on the jetty with daily cleansing of the jetty premises,” he said.