Women-centric toilet facility started at Gateway of India

Mumbai: After receiving flak from several tourists especially women about the lack of toilet and baby care facilities at Gateway of India, which is one of the popular tourists spots in the city, a facility catering especially to women’s needs has been started at the site on Thursday.

A free of charge toilet facility at the Gateway of India will also have special facilities for women like sanitary vending machine and a waiting area for breastfeeding. It will also have a water cooler and a ramp for handicapped persons. The toilet, which was inaugurated on Thursday morning, is expected to provide relief to thousands of visitors, who visit Gateway of India every day.

Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner, A ward, said that the facility will remain open throughout the day and would have women attendants manning it.

“There would be women attendants in uniform placed so that one can identify them. The maintenance of it would be done in a way that it remains clean all throughout,” he said.

The toilet has been built by Samatech Foundation in partnership with Round table India and Ladies circle India. Akshat Gupta, director, Samatech Foundation said, “The toilet has been designed in a way that it is in consonance with the heritage structure of Gateway of India. The designing has been done using stonecrete,” he said.

The toilet will also have five urinals for men. “Earlier it was to be an all women toilet but then considering the large footfall the area witnesses, we felt it would be important to have urinals for men as well,” said an official.

The BMC has procured the permission of the Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC) for setting up this facility as it comes in the Gateway of India premises, a heritage structure.