A/HRC/45/10/Add.2 across the country.52 In addition, a 2019 study by ActionAid India showed that 76 per cent of surveyed public toilets in Delhi did not have an accessibility ramp.53 67. Another group with particular sanitation needs are women and girls. Following the visit, in a 2018 Advisory on Public and Community Toilets, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs noted the need for gender-sensitive toilet facilities in public spaces, mentioning the need for privacy and safety. Notwithstanding this advisory, which the Special Rapporteur welcomes, sanitation facilities in India often remain unsatisfactory for women’s sanitation needs. A 2019 study on urban public toilets for women in six cities of India showed that 35 per cent of surveyed public toilets in Delhi did not have a separate section for women; 53 per cent of women’s toilets did not have running water; 45 per cent of toilets did not have a mechanism to lock the door from inside; and 58 per cent of participants mentioned they prefer changing sanitary napkins only at home and not when they are in work, school or public places.54 68. With regard to transgender persons, media continued to report on the experiences of transgender persons who have suffered from discrimination in accessing sanitation facilities.55 Regarding this, the Special Rapporteur notes the adoption of Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, which disallows the exclusion of transgender persons from any government scheme or benefit and calls for establishing National Council for Transgender persons, whose functions would include monitoring and reviewing all policies and government activities related to the rights of transgender persons. Considering the persisting disparity in access to toilets for transgender persons, the Special Rapporteur urges the Council to include addressing the issue of the human rights to water and sanitation of transgender persons as a core part of their functions. PROGRESS ON-GOING: The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government closely monitor the acceptability dimension of the human right to sanitation. Efforts should be made to track and record instances of all persons being able to use facilities, and they should be adapted or retrofitted to redress the issue. Further, it is crucial that provisions regarding the availability and accessibility of water and sanitation for persons with disabilities, women and transgendered persons are translated into practice. V. Spheres of life beyond the household 69. Targets 6.1 and 6.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals aim for universal access to water and sanitation by 2030, which can only be achieved when access to water and sanitation is addressed both within the household and in the spheres beyond the household. During the visit to India, the Special Rapporteur received several reports and often observed that public places, including transport hubs and police stations lacked sufficient and adequate facilities for water and toilets (A/HRC/39/55/Add.1, para. 23) Following the visit, he highlighted the concern that the disproportional impact that lack of provision of water and sanitation in public spaces has on populations in vulnerable situations, including persons living with disabilities, LGBTI persons, and women and girls (A/HRC/42/47, para. 43), as well as the populations who spend significant portions of time in public spaces, such as street workers and homeless persons (A/HRC/42/47, para. 3). 52 53 54 55 The Hindu Business Line, “Working towards a disabled-friendly India” (25 September 2018). ActionAid India, Public Toilets for Young Urban Women: A report on Gender Responsive Public Services in Six Cities of India (2019), 31. ActionAid India, Public Toilets for Young Urban Women: A report on Gender Responsive Public Services in Six Cities of India (2019), 6. Deccan Herald, “Toilets: He, She and Them?” (26 November 2019), and First Post, “Transgender individuals demand safer, gender-neutral bathrooms in India post-Section 377 verdict” (21 November 2018). 17