Prabhu urges India Inc to adopt bio-toilets at stations

Union Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu on Thursday appealed to industry to come forward in a big way to adopt and maintain bio-toilets in railway stations. The Rail Minister also exhorted industry to apply their business minds to develop water-less as well as odour-less and vacuum toilets.

“The Swachch Bharat Abhiyaan initiated at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was progressing speedily with the state governments vying with one-another to achieve an open defecation free (ODF) status,” Prabhu said.

Prabhu also said that to make India open defecation free, the local action was necessary but aid from the global community was also needed in terms of technological intervention.

On the occasion, Drinking Water & Sanitation Secretary Parameswaran Iyer said, “The need was to focus on behavioural change. The focus has shifted from building toilets to the use of these toilets as in many instances it has been found that though the toilet was built but it was used for other purposes such as a storage place.”

Dubbing sanitation as his meditation, Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji, who heads Parmarth Niketan Ashram, said, “The country needed to first build toilets, then educational institutes and temples. The change in the mindset was needed and World Toilet College was a step in the right direction.”