NEW DELHI: With the aim of enhancing the cleanliness and hygienic condition at rail premises and also preventing corrosion of tracks, railways aims to install bio-toilets in all passenger coaches by 2019 and has installed over 45,000 such toilets in coaches till October this year.
“The project of installation of bio-toilets in all passenger coaches has not yet been completed. The project is still in progress,” said a senior Railway Ministry official.
More than 49,000 bio-toilets have been installed in passenger coaches till October 31, 2016.
At present, there are more than 900 trains in which bio-toilets have been introduced either in all coaches or in some coaches of the trains.
“More and more trains are being progressively augmented with coaches fitted with bio-toilets,” he said adding “all new coached will be equipped with bio-toilets during the manufacturing.”
The additional cost of providing bio-toilets in one coach (4 bio-toilets) is Rs 4 lakh approximately and for the in-service coaches, which require replacement of structural members for fitment of bio-toilets, the additional cost is approximately Rs 16 lakh per coach, according to railways.
Anaerobic digestion process is applied for the digestion of human excreta in the bio-toilets that are being fitted in passenger coaches. No human excreta is thrown out on the railway track from a bio-toilet fitted in trains. (AGENCIES)
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