World's first college dedicated to hygiene and toilets to be operational in Rishikesh next year

Saturday November 21, 2015 , 4 min Read

World Toilet College, being touted as the first such effort being made internationally, will be operational from March next year, its developers announced on the occasion of United Nations World Toilet Day.

The first such college, being built with an intention to share knowledge about toilets including its modelling in scientific manners and creating awareness amongst public towards giving up open defecation in line with Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, will come up in Rishikesh, they said.

Informing about the initiative during a conference organised by Jagran Pehel to mark the Day, the developers – Parmarth Niketan, World Toilet Organisation (WTO), makers of Dettol and Harpic RB South Asia – said the college will be open for all those who want to learn and train others in know-how of toilets.

“This college is being developed to impart knowledge relating to toilets. There are so many people working on the issue in the country. All of them need to be given a single platform. All the knowledge has to be brought together.

“A toilet is being built for every 30 seconds. But how to design, build toilets, what should be its model, all these aspects need to be taught about and the same be passed on to others. We will do it through the college. We have built enough temples, now people need to be trained in constructing toilets,” Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan (rpt) president of Parmarth Niketan said.

He further said the developers aim to target young children “as they can be easily honed”, but added admissions will be open for all “whomsoever is interested in working on the issue”. “We want people with interest in eradicating the problem of open defecation to join us. We are trying to see we do not charge fees to those who want to learn from here,” he said.

The first facility at Rishikesh will have a capacity of training 1000 students to begin with, he said. The length of course to be undertaken will vary from three hours to three months, Saraswati added. The conference was also addressed by chairman of Jagran Pehel Sameer Gupta, WTO founder Jack Sim, Sadhvi Bhagwati Saraswati, sarpanch of Haryana’s Gomla village Radhe Shyam Gomla, RB India manager (external affairs) Ravi Bhatnagar and others.

As the United Nations observed World Toilet Day, a recent survey revealed that 99 per cent Indian travellers need more restrooms facilities and 98 per cent women demand washrooms on highways. About 99 per cent travellers in the country said there is a need for more toilets across tourism destinations and spots in the country, a survey conducted by travel community HolidayIQ said.

Interestingly, it found that highways were given the highest number of votes on where we need more toilets, topping the list at 92 per cent. While only 85 per cent male travellers voted for highways, 98 per cent women travellers expressed a need for more toilets on highways, it pointed out.

They also mention toilets are an essential element in planning holidays, especially in deciding the mode of travel, as per the survey. The survey, conducted over last one week, to understand the current scenario and importance of access to restrooms, while travelling, saw participation of over 32,000 travellers from over 80 Indian cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Pune.

“Of the 2.4 billion people in the world who have no toilets, India accounts for nearly 600 million. Those who have travelled the country will understand the fuss about toilets in India too well. Even at some of the world’s most frequented sightseeing sites in India, access to toilets is considered a luxury,” it said.

With festive tourism growing and travellers heading to destinations with religious and spiritual significance, 86 per cent travellers felt there should be more accessibility to toilets in these places. About 76 per cent travellers feel that bus stations and buses are other areas that need to have access to clean toilets.

It also revealed that 86 per cent travellers demand cleaner toilets while 71 per cent feel the need for more toilets. Safety and security accounted for 62 per cent, 56 per cent demand disabled friendly toilets and 37 per cent said there should be feeding rooms for women, it added.

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