COVER STORY
BINDESHWAR PATHAK
Even today a third of the world does not have access to basic sanitation, resulting in water
and soil pollution, and widespread health problems like cholera and dysentery.
On the ocassion of the World Toilet Day on 19 November, here’s an insight into the evolution
of toilets in world history and efforts in India to bring sanitation to every household, from
the man who is the brain behind the Sulabh Shauchalyas and well known for his wideranging work in sanitation to improve public health.
Toilets over the Ages
S
ANITATION is a concept that
encompasses water supply, safe
disposal of human waste, waste water
and solid waste, control of vectors of
diseases, domestic and personal hygiene.
Consideration of the social, environmental
and ecological aspects of sanitation is
critical to ensure improvements in health
and quality of life, as well as promoting
sustainable development.
A UNICEF report has underlined
that the sanitation problem is most
acute in rural areas, where only 18% of
the population worldwide has access
to toilets. In the urban areas of the
developing countries too, over 37% of the
population lacks such facilities.
A comparison between toilet
facilities available in urban and rural
areas in India over two decades, viz. 1991
to 2011, shows that the situation in rural
areas is not as encouraging as it could
have been. But the level of satisfaction
has increased with improvements. An
increase of even a few percentage points
is significant, considering the magnitude
of the problem in India.
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
Toilets have been with humans ever since
they left forests and decided to move
ahead on the civilisational highway. In the
forests, for thousands of years, humans
defecated like other fellow animals. This
open defecation continues in the human
societies to some extent even today.
However, some of the oldest civilizations
viz. Egypt, India and Mesopotamia had
developed toilets by the third millennium
BC. Wet toilets were in use from 2,500 BC
to 1,700 BC in India, Egypt, Mesopotamia
and Crete.
At Mohenjodaro in modern Pakistan,
one can see an extant flush type toilet
of the Harappan settlements of 2,500
BC. After excretion, one would pour a
bucket of water which would take the
waste out of the town via a honey-comb
drainage system. At some other sites of
that civilization including Dholavira in
Gujarat, people used well-constructed
underground drains, now known as
sewers. Every residential unit had a
bathroom fitted with terracotta pipes to
carry out wash water.
Unlike India, the Egyptians did not
have a structured disposal system. Due to
lack of water, they either waited for the
Nile annual flood to sweep the waste away
or they mixed fertile mud of the flood with
Ancient toilet in the City of David
archaeological excavation
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COVER STORY
Marble toilet seats in ancient public toilets,
Dion, Greece
Some of the oldest civilizations viz. Egypt, India and Mesopotamia had developed toilets by the third millennium
BC. Wet toilets were in use from 2,500 BC to 1,700 BC in India, Egypt, Mesopotamia and Crete.
human excrement to be used as manure.
On the other hand, the Mesopotamian
civilisation, which developed in the doab
of the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, had
ample water availability, which they used
in their toilets.
In about 1700 BC, in the Knossos
Palace of Crete and Island in the
Mediterranean Sea, there were flush
toilets in the residential part of the queen.
In his excavation, the famous archeologist
Arthur Evans also found a ceramic
bathtub in the queen’s bathroom. It was
exclusively used by the queen and was
directly connected with the drainage
system. Like their Indian counterparts,
the Greek royalty also used terracotta
drain-pipes.
After the seventh century BC, Roman
Europe made a significant contribution
to the field of toilets, bath and drainage.
In 615 BC, Emperor Lucius Tarcuinis
constructed Europe’s oldest sewer known
as Cloaka Maxima in Rome. Earlier, it
was open and meant for receiving ground
water. Around the third century BC, the
sewer was covered and waste water was
also released into it. A portion of this old
sewer is still operational.
Much later in 380 BC in Athenian
Agora also sewers were constructed for
the disposal of wastewater. Aristotle had
advised his countrymen to throw away
waste at least two kilometres away from
the castle.
In 200 BC, in the Antonius Public
Bath of Rome there were 1600 holes in
planks over the flowing river water for
defecation. Such river-top toilets were in
use in some other parts of the world also,
and this practice still continues in the hills
and interiors of some countries including
India. During this period, in public toilets
in Rome, seats with holes in the middle
were arranged in a semi-circular shape.
By the second century BC, the
Romans had developed a very elaborate
bath system. Their public bath was
almost a complex with separate rooms for
undressing/re-dressing, massage, hot/
warm/cool water etc. Such baths were
social centers where, besides freshening
themselves, the beneficiaries also sat
together and gossiped. In some warm
water streams at several places in the
Empire, both sexes took bath together.
Both the developed cities of Pompeii and
Herculaneious had all these facilities.
However, they were erased in the
Vesuvius volcano eruption of 84 BC. The
excavations have unraveled them, as the
volcanic ash worked as a safe cover to
keep them intact.
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SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
COVER STORY
SANITATION SCENARIO IN INDIA FROM THE 2011 CENSUS DATA
Sl. No.
Households by
Absolute number
Percentage
type of latrine facility
Total
Rural
Urban
Total
Rural
Urban
1
Total number of
Households
246,692,667
167,826,730
78,865,937
100
100
100
2
Latrine facility within
the premises
115,737,458
51,575,339
64,162,119
46.9
30.7
81.4
A
Water Closet
89,852,052
32,616,824
57,235,228
36.4
19.4
72.6
i
Piped sewer system
29,471,391
3,696,144
25,775,247
11.9
2.2
32.7
ii
Septic Tank
54,758,885
24,671,448
30,087,437
22.2
14.7
38.2
iii
Other System
5,621,776
4,249,232
1,372,544
2.3
2.5
1.7
B
Pit Latrine
23,279,128
17,681,985
5,597,143
9.4
10.5
7.1
i
With slab/ventilated
improved pit
18,813,022
13,746,699
5,066,323
7.6
8.2
6.4
ii
without slab/open pit
4,466106
3,935,286
530,820
1.8
2.3
0.7
C
Other Latrine
2,606,278
1,276,530
1,329,748
1.1
0.8
1.7
i
Night Soil disposed into
open drain
1,314,652
372,009
942,643
0.5
0.2
1.2
ii
Night soil removed by
humans
794,390
586,067
208,323
0.3
0.3
0.3
iii
Night soil serviced by animals
497,236
318,454
178,782
0.2
0.2
0.2
3
No Latrine within the premises 130,955,209
116,251,391
14,703,818
53.1
69.3
18.6
i
Public Latrine
7,997,699
3,253,892
4,743,807
3.2
1.9
6.0
ii
Open
122,957,510
112,997,499
9,960,011
49.8
67.3
12.6
COMPARISON OF INDIAN HOUSEHOLDS WITH TOILET FACILITY IN 1991, 2001 AND 2011
Have Toilet Facility Within Premises
Do Not Have Toilet Facility Within Premises
1991
2001
2011
2001
2011
Total
23.70
36.4
46.9
63.6
53.0
Rural
9.48
21.9
30.7
78.1
69.3
Urban
63.85
73.7
81.4
26.3
18.6
51.8
50.7
51.8
-50.7
Rural – Urban Diff.
A comparison between toilet facilities available in urban and rural areas in
India over two decades, viz. 1991 to 2011, shows that the situation in rural
areas is not as encouraging as it could have been.
In the field of sanitation, the Roman
Empire is also known for some strange
practices. Emperor Vespasianus imposed
tax on toilets in 69 AD, perhaps the first
in the world. Despite public opposition,
he did not budge. In public toilets there,
two users sat together without any cover
between them. There was a pitcher full
of water and a sponge-head stick for
cleaning oneself. There was a stone tank
which was filled with rain water.
Child seat and chamber pot, early 6th century
BC, Agora Museum, Athens
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
14
Emperor
Heliogabas
was
assassinated in his toilet. Around 315 AD,
most of the 144 public toilets in Rome
were W.C. type. In 395 AD, when the
Roman Empire split, the countries of the
eastern part like Syria, Turkey, etc. appear
to have ignored the sanitation lessons
of the western counterpart. The Eastern
world reverted to the old practice of open
defecation.
Around 1088 AD, a new experiment
was made in the field of toilets. Toilets in
the Lochister Fort in England were made
in the fort wall. Such toilet seats had a
COVER STORY
According to early
excavators, in
Mohenjodaro most
toilets were postcremation sump
pots or burial urns.
The top of this
brick structure had
a hole that was
linked to a small
drain that emerged
out of the base
into a basin of
rectangular shape.
Early excavators
proposed this to
be a toilet.
(left)
slant ensuring the waste fell outside the
peripheral wall either in the open barren
land or in a surrounding moat. Such toilets
were used in some forts of Rajasthan as
well. The toilets were useful for security
reasons as it was not advisable for the
King and the nobility as also ladies of the
nobles to go outside for defecation. For
this reason only, Indian scriptures advised
the Kings not to go for evacuation beyond
the distance of an arrow-throw.
However, toilets and other sanitation
arrangements were limited to only the
privileged classes and the common man
had no access to them. Consequently,
the primitive practice of open defecation
continued. The situation on the sanitation
front was so grim that societies were
repeatedly ravaged by health hazards.
The devastating epidemics of plague in
1348 and 1350 decimated the European
population almost by half. That is why,
sanitarians call the period from the fifth
to fifteenth century as the Black Age in the
sanitation world history.
Several other nasty practices were in
vogue. People in Holland and other major
European countries used to empty their
night-soil pots into the streets from the
window of the first floor in the darkness
Throne-like chamber pot
of the evening, with the night-soil often
falling on the innocent passersby. In
the Indian subcontinent, ladies had to
complete this unavoidable daily chore
before sunrise or after sunset.
One royal toilet-related eccentricity
was reported from France. Louis XIII
and his son Louis XIV used throne-like
chamber pots. While doing business,
both these French emperors used to give
audience to select people. Louis XIII used
old linen in place of any tissue paper for
ablution. Toilet papers were not invented
at this time. Budal, a member of the Jesus
society and confession priest for the
females of the French royal family, was
regarded as a symbol of good luck and
thus people named the toilet bowl after
him.
The sixteenth century is also known
for the earth closet, which became quite
popular. An earth closet is a lavatory in
which dry earth is used to cover excreta.
Until a hundred years ago, the traditional
place of easement for people living in the
country was a cesspit or an earth-closet.
An improved variety was invented by a
British Clergyman named Henry Moule
in 1860, which comprised of commode
with a bucket below the seat, and a hopper
behind it containing fine dry earth or
ashes. After the evacuation drill was over,
a lever was pulled to release a measured
amount of earth into the bucket which
covered the waste. The closet was often
inside a shed or privy, which provided
some privacy and protection from
inclement weather. For the next decades
or so in the second half of the nineteenth
century, the earth closet and the watercloset were in hot competition. It is on
record that Moule’s device remained in
use till 1850.
The real breakthrough came when
John Harrington, a courtier as well as
godson of Queen Elizabeth I invented
the first modern flush toilet in 1596. The
general abhorrence against toilets at that
time was so strong that John Harrington
was banished from the Elizabethan court
for making a horrible thing. Much later
he was recalled, rehabilitated and given
the title of “Sir”. Harrington could make
only two pieces – one for his own use and
the second was installed in the Queen’s
bathroom in the Richmond Palace. This
simple system had an overhead tank
and flushing mechanism and thus was a
pioneer WC in the field.
From the fourteenth to the
seventeenth century, night soil was
thrown from the windows on the first
floor on the streets. They were always full
of solid waste and foul water. The dress
code for the ladies of that period was to
15
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
COVER STORY
In the Sulabh Effluent Treatment
Technology, the effluent is passed
through a sedimentation tank where
solid particles settle, they are then
passed through an aeration tank
to reduce the biochemical demand
(BOD).
Sulabh Effluent Treatment Technology
put on long maxi-like garments whose
lower ends tended to touch this dirt. It is
to prevent this that the fashion of putting
on high heeled shoes ensued!
A
German
doctor
Christian
Fratzpautin even published a book in
Latin entitled Pharmacy of Stool. In Paris
in 1668, Police Commissioner Nicholade-Ralen passed an edict ordering the
construction of toilets in all houses. Later,
in 1770 in Paris, all private houses were
ordered to construct urinals within one
month or face eviction.
With the beginning of the eighteenth
century, a series of innovations started
coming up in the field of toilets. Architect
J.F. Brondel described the ideal toilet as
one that was next to the bedroom, having
a covered seat and the whole system was
attached to the wall so that it was hidden.
Later he also introduced valve-type toilet
in British style. In 1739, at a ball in Paris,
for the first time separate toilets for both
sexes were made.
A Sulabh toilet
complex
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
The path-breaking invention of John
Harrington was forgotten for nearly 179
years when Alexander Cummings, a
watch-maker of London came with the
first patent in 1775. It was his initiative
that the WC once again caught public
imagination. The Harrington piece was
simple enough, without any mechanism
to stop the foul smell from coming back
to the bathroom. Cummings provided
an ‘S’ type trap due to which some water
always remained in the pan working as
a seal, preventing the spread of the foul
smell. This bend kept improving in the
coming times.
Only two years after that Thomas
Prosser got registered a second patent,
which was an improvement on
Cummings’ WC. Through a circular cock,
water level could be regulated. When the
lever was pulled, waste was flushed. This
design, called “pan closet”, suppressed
the foul smell completely. Its drawbacks
were that the sound of pan revolution
was high and its cleaning power was
less. In 1778, this design was perfected
by Joseph Bramah, and was to remain the
most satisfactory water closet for the next
several years.
In the coming days, several
sanitarians like Joseph Blumer, James
Grease, David Lease, Architect Jellow,
Thomas Launtry, John Athlay, John Bin
and some others from 1778 to 1793 came
forward with their patents for further
improving the toilet and making it userfriendly. John Athlay produced a WC in
which water was supplied automatically
as the user sat on it.
There were many other sanitary
heroes in the nineteenth century
16
-- inventors, engineers, producers,
manufacturers and architects – who
had to fight for sanitary law reforms. It
was George Jennings who first applied
the sanitary technology to public
conveniences. He had introduced his ideas
at the Great Exhibition of 1851, with his
“Monkey Closets” in the retiring rooms
at Hyde Park and later at Sydenham. This
was despite the strongest objections, with
him being told that the visitors were not
coming to the exhibition merely to wash.
He was later to be awarded a gold medal
for his much needed contributions to
sanitary technology.
By the 1890s, Jennings and his
followers had improved toilet-related
sanitation devices on public thoroughfares
all over England. Thirty-six towns and
many others are listed in the catalogue of
1895 as having been improved by public
conveniences.
George Jennings had also supplied
his toilets to thirty railway companies in
England, USA, Buenos Aires, Cape Town
and Mexico. The streets of Paris, Berlin
and Florence were provided with public
urinals devised by him. Jennings’ ideas
were revolutionary: firstly, conveniences
were built underground with cast
iron arches and railings to mark their
whereabouts. Those built above-ground
were distinctive little buildings in their
own right with their pillars, panels and
lamps. He built the urinals in slate and
also devised the central pillar with urinals
around it, saving space and water. Seeing
the Jennings catalogues of designs of
superb urinals, one can say that they are
little temples of convenience.
In the last quarter of the nineteenth
century, there was a trend to produce
ornamental water closets, baths and
basins. The wealth from colonies to the
European countries and the emergence of
ceramic as the raw material paved the way
for such costly experiments. The toilets
appeared in a dazzling variety of pattern
with names like ‘Ruby Hispani’, ‘Natural
Wild Rose’, ‘Pencelled Blackthrone’,
‘Peacock Blue Poppy’ and ‘Japanesque’.
COVER STORY
Source AFP
ANTI-MANUAL SCAVENGING BILL PASSED
The Indian Parliament recently passed a Bill seeking to prohibit employment of individuals as manual scavengers by prescribing
stringent punishment, including imprisonment up to five years. The Bill has provisions for rehabilitaon of manual scavengers and their
family members as well. The Bill seeks to wipe out the “social sgma” by arranging for alternave jobs and offering other provisions
to those in such work and their families.
Under the new law, each occupier of an insanitary latrine is responsible for converng or demolishing it at his own cost. If he fails
to do so, the local authority will convert the latrine and recover the cost from him. Each local authority, cantonment board and railway
authority are responsible for surveying insanitary latrines within their jurisdicon. Such latrines, where manual scavenging happens,
will have to be demolished; otherwise somebody will be engaged to do it.
The men responsible for this
decorative explosion were also responsible
for developing the water closets that we
use today. Hellyer improved Bramah’s
valve closet nearly hundred years after
Alexander Cummings patent and gave
it the famous name of Optimus. He
produced sixteen of them with slight
variations in their workings from
Optimus A to Optimus P. This series of
toilets were produced till the outbreak of
the Second World War when production
came to a standstill because of a tight
economic situation. The extant pieces can
be seen today in museums only.
The Gladstone Museum of Pottery,
Trent, England has several decorated
toilets on display. When in demand,
they were installed in Buckingham
Palace, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court
Palace, Holyrood House and Osborne
for Queen Victoria, in Marlborough
House, Windsor, Buckingham Palace and
Balmoral for Edward VII. They were also
installed for George V, the Czar of Russia,
the King of Siam, the Duke of Wellington,
in the British Parliament, the Royal Courts
of Justice and the War office.
Thereafter, Hellyer’s ‘wash out’
closet, Daniel Thomas Bostels’ ‘Excelsior’,
Thomas Twyford’s ‘National’, and his
ceramic pedestal version called ‘Unitas’
and the pieces of several others like those
of Edward John, Thomas Crapper and
John Shanks also became quite popular.
With the growing demand from the
sanitary loving people several factories
came up to meet the supply. They
produced hundreds of innovations and
variations on the water closet. Today only
four are made: the ‘wash-down’ and the
‘symphonic’, the ‘squatting bowl’ and the
‘wash-out’ for the suppliers abroad.
Of late, there have been further
changes in toilet technology. Due to global
warming and paucity of water, WCs are
becoming a luxury. Therefore, there is a
frantic search for water-free toilets. Some
17
innovations have come from USA and
South Africa, but they are not only costly
but also not culturally acceptable.
Human Waste Management in
India
In the Pauranic period, religious sanction
existed prohibiting people from defecating
near human habitation. It was suggested
that people go at some distance from their
houses for defecation. People would dig
a small pit in the ground, put some grass
and leaves in it. After defecating here,
they would again put some grass and
leaves over the excreta in the pit and fill
it with soil.
In the Mauryan period, there was a
law stating that a person could be fined up
to 100 Pun (monetary unit) if he defecated
in the open and 10 Pun if he urinated in
public. However, exemption was given to
those who were sick or on medicines.
In the Mughal period also, practices
both of defecation in the open and manual
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
COVER STORY
ADVANTAGES OF A TWO-PIT POUR-FLUSH COMPOST TOILET
•
It is technically appropriate, cost effecve, socio-culturally acceptable and easy to construct with locally available material.
•
It can be constructed in different physical, geological and hydrogeological condions.
•
It is free from health hazards as it does not pollute surface or ground water, if proper precauons and safeguards are taken during
construcon.
•
Pits are generally designed for a three-year desludging interval. If desired,
can be designed for a longer period or reduced even to two years.
•
It needs only 1.5 to 2 litres of water for flushing, while convenonal flush
toilet needs 12 to 14 litres of water.
•
It needs less space than a sepc tank toilet system.
•
It does not need scavengers for cleaning the pits or disposal of sludge.
This can be done by the householder.
•
The brick lining in la2 ce formaon exposing soil towards the inner side
of the pit facilitates absorpon of gases which dispenses with the need
to install vent pipe.
•
It makes available rich ferlizer and soil condioner.
•
It can be easily connected to sewers when introduced in the area.
•
A low volume flushing cistern can be a4 ached to avoid pour flushing.
Environment friendly
two-pit, pour-flush
compost toilet known
as Sulabh Shauchalaya
cleaning of human excreta by human
scavengers prevailed. Some members of
the feudal class and the upper segment of
the merchant class resorted to defecation
in a confined place to ensure privacy. This
led to the necessity of engaging persons
to clean excreta, which in turn created the
scavenging community.
During the British period there was
introduction of sewerage and septic tank
systems. But these innovations could
not be adopted on a large scale because
of the heavy cost of construction and
maintenance, as well as the need for
enormous quantities of water for flushing.
Even during the British period, defecation
in the open and manual cleaning of
human excreta continued.
Mahatma Gandhi wanted to end the
practice of defecation in the open and
manual cleaning of human excreta by
human scavengers. He appealed to the
people to keep India clean and restore
the dignity of the untouchables. Gandhiji
advocated the use of trench latrines,
which he himself was using while he
was in Phoenix Ashram in Durban,
South Africa. He asked his followers and
freedom fighters to use trench latrines in
their homes as far as possible and also
suggested adoption of the practice of tatti
pe mitti i.e. covering human excreta with
soil so that flies do not sit on human faeces
and to prevent foul smell spreading.
Over the years, a number of
committees were formed to look into the
matter. They suggested improvements in
the working conditions of the scavengers,
but did not talk about the need to eliminate
manual cleaning of excreta.
It is at this point, in 1970, that I
founded Sulabh International Social
Service Organisation. Until I became
an adult, I lived in a village. There was
hardly a household with toilet facility and
villagers did the necessities in the open.
Members of our family, including myself
were no exception.
Later, as part of the Gandhi
Centenary Celebration Committee in
Bihar, I had first-hand experience of
manual scavenging as a member of the
Scavengers Liberation Cell.
At around this time, I also read a
book by Wagner of WHO titled
Excreta Disposal for Rural Areas in Small
Communities, which advocated installation
of alternately used pour flush compost
pit privy. Reasoning that if the design
was suitable in one set of conditions
(rural areas) then its adoption in similar
conditions elsewhere i.e. urban areas may
be feasible, I advocated its installation
both in urban and rural areas.
My first break in the field was getting
an order to build two toilets in the town of
Arrah. In 1974, the work of construction
as also conversion of bucket toilets into
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
18
Reasoning that
if the design was
suitable in one
set of conditions
(rural areas) then
its adoption in
similar conditions
elsewhere i.e.
urban areas
may be feasible,
I advocated its
installation both
in urban and rural
areas.
Sulabh design based toilets was decided
to be initiated all over Bihar and in 1978 it
was recommended to be adopted in other
States of the country.
Sulabh Technology
Sulabh has the credit of making nearly
1.3 million toilets by constructing new
or converting bucket toilets into Sulabh
design based two-pit toilets. The two-pit
pour-flush compost toilet has encouraged
girls to attend schools full time and has
reduced their dropout rate from school. It
has also helped women to defecate with
privacy, dignity and security.
What has helped most the spread of
Sulabh two-pit pour-flush compost toilet
COVER STORY
SULABH INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM OF TOILETS
I first got the idea for this museum a5 er vising Madam Tussauds when I visited England. On
my return to India, I wrote le4ers to nearly a hundred foreign embassies, of whom sixty replied
sending material pertaining to toilet pracces in their countries. I also collected material and
informaon from other sources. Eventually, the Museum was established in Delhi in 1992 and
formally inaugurated in March 1994.
The objecve was, and connues to be, to make it a storehouse of toilet-related history and
technologies for students, researchers, journalists and other interested secons.
By now, there are about three hundred objects on display, divided into ancient, medieval
and modern age categories. It starts from 2500 BC from in-house toilets from Harappan
se4 lements in India, which happened
to be WC. It also exhibits the model of
the first modern flush toilet invented
by John Harrington in 1596 in England.
Our collecon includes the
throne-like chamberpot of Louis-IV
of France (while using which he gave
audience to select people), Incinolet
from USA (which burns excreta
quickly and conserves fresh water)
and the eco-friendly tent toilet for
campaigning using bio-degradable
plasc bag. Addionally, the museum
has a collecon of humorous and toiletbased toys to a4 ract ny-tots.
The museum has gained worldwide
popularity and millions have visited its website and lakhs of people have physically seen it. Almost all the print and electronic media have
done their stories and several documentaries have been made on this museum, which has also been included in the list of world’s ten
weirdest museums.
design is the delivery mechanism. Sulabh
takes upon itself the responsibility of:
•
Processing paperwork relating to
receipt of funds by the beneficiary
under the low income related subsidy
programme of the government for
construction of household toilets
•
•
•
Doing quality construction work
Obtaining certificate from the
beneficiary and
Undertaking free of cost defect
removal work of any construction
for a given period of years.
19
There also is the necessity of a toilet
by the floating population at places of
congregation viz. markets, railway and
bus stations, cinemas or at special events
like sports events, etc. For this, building
community toilets was essential. Sulabh
has taken up construction of new public
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
COVER STORY
Construction and
maintenance of such a
large number is primarily
of Sulabh toilets is due to
efficient round-the-clock
maintenance.
More recently, a biogas
plant was attached to the
public toilets and Sulabh
Effluent Treatment Device.
Designs of Sulabh
toilets as also running and maintaining
existing public toilets.
By now Sulabh has constructed
and maintains nearly 8000 public
toilet complexes all over the country.
Construction and maintenance of such a
large number is primarily due to efficient
round-the-clock maintenance.
More recently, a biogas plant was
attached to the public toilets and Sulabh
Effluent Treatment Device. The unique
feature of the biogas technology is that
the plant is human excreta based and
has a fixed dome. The biogas is used
for cooking, lighting mantle lamps for
street lighting, and warming oneself in
winters.
In the Sulabh Effluent Treatment
Technology, the effluent is passed
through a sedimentation tank where
solid particles settle, they are then passed
through an aeration tank to reduce the
biochemical demand (BOD). Then, sand
filtration separates suspended particles,
and water is passed through the charcoal
bed which makes the effluent colourless
and odourless. Subsequently, pathogens
are killed by passing through the U.V.
chamber. This effluent can be used for
horticulture and kitchen garden watering
purposes. The effluent is thus processed
and recycled.
The most important part of the entire
system is the excreta disposal mechanism.
In the Sulabh design toilet there is on-site
disposal facilitated by alternate use of the
two pits. Of the two, one pit is put to use,
which takes two to three years to fill up.
When this happens, the flow of excreta to
the pit is blocked by placing across a brick
in the channel through which the excreta
flows into the first pit. The second pit is
then put to use, taking approximately two
to three years to get filled up. During this
period the excreta in the first pit dries up.
This system results in dispensing
with the necessity of engaging a
scavenger as dried excreta can be taken
out by the householder himself. The
lattice formation of the brick lining
ensures absorption of carbon dioxide
and traces of methane and ammonia. The
on-site disposal facility of the two-pit
system ensures combining storage and
disposal stages making the usefulness
of the system unique. The human waste
gets converted to manure with nitrogen,
potassium and phosphorus.
The biogas digester linked to public
toilet and attached with Sulabh Effluent
Treatment device ensures that the BOD
of the toilet effluent is reduced to a purity
of less than 10 mg/l. The gases in the
bio-digester plant are methane, carbon
SCIENCE REPORTER, NOVEMBER 2013
20
dioxide, hydrogen sulphide and trace
gases.
The commonality in the two
systems is: a) in both the systems gases
produced are not allowed to escape
into the atmosphere, and b) in both the
technologies good soil nutrients are
produced viz. phosphorus, nitrogen and
potash and can be used for horticulture
and kitchen garden purposes.
Whereas in the two-pit technology
carbon-dioxide gets absorbed in the soil
facing the pit, the methane from the biogas
plant gets burnt when used for cooking
or for lighting purposes. The two-pit
system is ideal for individual households.
The community toilet with biogas plant
attached to the Sulabh Effluent Treatment
device is most suited for hostels, hospitals,
high-rise buildings, etc.
Dr Bindeshwar Pathak, the brain behind Sulabh
International, is a Padma Bhushan recipient. He has
also received the Energy Globe Award, the Dubai
International Award for Best Practices, and the
Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award for Environment.
Stockholm Water Prize was awarded to him in 2009.
In June 2013, he also received the Legend of Planet
award from the French senate in Paris. Dr Pathak is
founder of the Sulabh International Social Service
Organisation, Sulabh Gram, Mahavir Enclave,
Palam-Dabri Marg, New Delhi–110045; Email:
[email protected]/[email protected]