The Need for Better Designed Public Toilets in Urban India

Submitted by: Sebastian Peter

Abstract:

Sanitation is an often ignored aspect of human life. 2.6 billion people worldwide -
40% of the world’s population - do not have a toilet .The United Nations Developmental
Programme (UNDP) has implemented the Millennium Development Goals(MDG) and goal
7 of the programme aims at improving sanitation world .Sanitation encompasses a wide range
of issues including human excreta disposal, personal hygiene, solid waste disposal, water,
environmental cleanliness and drainage. The effects of poor sanitation manifests itself through
diseases ,infant deaths, lost work days and poor health of affected populations. Both urban
and rural India present unique challenges to accomplishing complete sanitation

In urban India because of the congested nature of cities with huge slum populations
the effects of poor sanitation are serious and immediately felt. There are two main types of
toilets found for public use in urban India, communal toilets for use by slum and JJ colony
residents and general public toilets to be used by people at common public spaces such as
railway stations, bus stands, markets and stadiums. But these facilities are still inadequate to
serve the entire urban population and very often their maintenance and upkeep is very bad
leading to it falling into a state of disrepair and people resort to open defecation. This study
attempts to find out the reasons for the failure of such facilities to ensure good sanitation in
urban environments in India .The study was conducted through reviews of existing literature
on the focus area, live case studies of public toilets and subsequent documentation and online
surveys conducted to obtain user responses to public toilets. The study noted that the factors
that contributed to the bad state of upkeep and subsequent disuse of urban sanitation
facilities were vandalism , lack of water, lack of education and training, non-provision of
dustbins, soap and mugs , lack of cleaning , and the perception of the public toilet being a
dirty and unhygienic place . In view of these findings a need statement and design brief for a
new public toilet that builds on the findings of this research was formulated.

1.1 Aims: To study the analyze the state of public sanitation in

urban India.
1.2 Objectives: To deduce what are the reasons for the failure of
public toilets to curb bad sanitation in Urban India. and to formulate
a design brief for a new design of public toilets which eliminates these
issues
1.3 Methodology:
• Study of background literature from various organizations in
India related to the field of public sanitation and abroad that
dwell on the statistics, issues of implementation, technology
options and local factors .

References:  
 
 

1 
 
 • Case Studies conducted on public toilets in various localities .
• Online survey advocated to a sample group to determine
perceptions and use of public toilet facilities.
• Analysis of issues and their documentation
• Formulation of need statement
• Formulation of Design Brief
1.4: Scope:
The word “Sanitation” for the purpose of this guide relates directly to
the practice of using the toilet and the safe disposal of human excreta.
Sanitation as a topic is generally considered taboo and people are not
willing to spend time talking about it. As such the findings of the
survey are based entirely on the opinions of the surveyed respondents
who were administered the survey guaranteeing them anonymity by
the author. The study was conducted in and around the city of Delhi
and findings is assumed to be generally true for other Indian cities
having a similar cosmopolitan population and facing similar issues in
relation to public sanitation.
1.5: Introduction Image 01: Untreated sewage and
Good sanitation is of paramount importance for health, poverty uncollected solid waste block
alleviation and environmental protection. The scale of the issue can drainage and pollute waterways
be estimated from the fact that 2.6 billion people in the world still do
not have access to proper sanitation facilities.[1] .Around 55% of
Indians or about 600 million people do not have access to any kind of
improved sanitation.[2]. Open defecation is one of the many
challenges facing a country like India . Statistical data show that in
rural India the percentage of population without access to proper
sanitation is an appalling 74% whereas the percentage of population
in urban India without access to sanitation was pegged at 16.8%
(according to the National Family Health Survey 3 (NFHS -3) (2005-
2006).)[3]

Image 02: The sanitation problem

is most evident in urban poor and
rural communities, and affects
women and children in particular

1.6: Effects of Poor Sanitation:

The effects of poor sanitation can be summarized into four
categories[4]:
a) Health impacts
b) Water impacts
c) Environmental impacts
d) Welfare impacts

References:  
1. http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/factsheet.html
2. India’s Sanitation for All:How to Make it Happen
3. Sekhar Bonu and Hun Kim/SANITATION IN INDIA:Progress, Differentials, Correlates, and Challenges
4. Economic Impacts of Sanitation in Southeast Asia Summary

2 
 
 Health impacts can be seen in the transmission of diseases such as
diarrhoea which are transmitted by water pollution as a result of
improper sanitation .Children are especially vulnerable to such
ailments and it is estimated that nearly 5000 children die daily due to
water borne illnesses [5].  There are also links between poor sanitation
and acute respiratory infections (ARIs), such as pneumonia [6] Also it
becomes difficult to take proper care of a patient affected with such
diseases when there is no toilet nearby. Water sources are
contaminated by the inflow of human waste from open defecation and
untreated sewage. Pathogens found in human faeces enter the food
chain through contaminated water and skin ailments and digestive
disorders. The expense of procuring drinkable water increases as a
result of improper sanitation as people have to resort to bottled water
or government supplied treated water on a pay-per litre basis.
Environmental degradation happens as a result of poor sanitation.
Open decomposition of wastes releases foul smell into the air and
Image 03: With improved
reduces the liveability and utility of the area. Welfare impacts of poor sanitation facilities in place,
sanitation are hard to quantify. Women are one of the most affected children do not have to play in
groups and affect their quality of life. They have to resort to control of dirty areas
their bodily urges from dawn to dusk because of the lack of privacy.
Also they are still subject to sexual harassment when they have to
defecate openly when there are no toilets available.Also lack of toilets
result in missed work and school days due to illness and therefore
leads to reduction in productivity and hence affects the financial
stability of the family. Tourists are also affected when they do not `
have access to toilets and are less likely to visit the area again thereby
limiting the state’s opportunity to gain capital by tourism.

1.7 Focus Area of Study:

Rural and Urban Sanitation in India are both in a bad state but urban
sanitation is considerably better in terms of coverage of people with
access to sanitation. At the same time, in urban areas the effects of
poor sanitation are more immediately and seriously felt because of the
congested living as a result of rural- urban migration. Lack of space
coupled with improper drainage systems result in immediate
transmission of diseases and deteriorates the quality of life in these
areas. It is expected that by 2030 , 61 percent of the world’s
population would reside in cities. India shares this demographic trend
with world growth rate.[7] .Mass migration of people leads to the
development of slums in urban areas which are putting a heavy strain
on the urban sanitation infrastructure. This has resulted in adverse
health and ecological challenges. Thus it is apt to study the way how
present infrastructure in urban areas is handling the demand and Image 04: Dirty state of Slum
scrutinize it for fallacies and formulate means to rectify or improve the Sanitation
situation.

References:

5. Sanitation is vital for Health

6. Sanitation is vital for Health
7. Population growth, Trends, projections, challenges and opportunities.

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 1.8: Urban Sanitation:

The main challenges facing urban sanitation in India are

a. Low service coverage and infrastructure
b. Low service usage
c. Behaviour and attitude of residents

Low service coverage and infrastructure relates to the lack of

facilities to serve the needs of the entire urban population.
Existing sewer channels layouts do not cover the entire city.
This limits the area that can be covered by conventional
disposal systems and consequently the provision of toilets is
affected. As a result open defecation becomes the norm for
residents. At the same time it can be observed that people do
not make use of existing facilities for a variety of reasons such
as poor upkeep and hygiene which will be detailed out later. So
even with the presence of these facilities , open defecation
continues, while some groups such as women face issues which Image 05: Open sewers in slums
restrict their movement within the city. Behaviour and the lead to bad odour and causes
attitude of the residents is one of the most challenging aspects health issues
of urban sanitation. It is meaningless to build toilets and
provide the necessary infrastructure when the behaviour of the
residents do not change. In such cases open defecation will
continue to be challenge even if the city moves ahead in all
other spheres of life.

1.10: Types of Public Sanitation facilities:

Formalised public urban sanitation sewage system in India is based
on the centralized treatment model where sewage is channeled to a
central sewage treatment plant through local sewers which are
themselves fed by trunk sewers. Treated sewage is then dumped
into a water body such as a river or treated sludge is deposited as
landfill. But the capacity of these sewage treatment plants is usually
limited and as a result sewage is also dumped into the water body
without undergoing treatment.

From an outset two main types of public sanitation facilities can be

seen in the field of urban sanitation.
• Community Toilet Complexes ( for slums, JJ colonies)
• General use Public Toilets ( at bus stops, railway stations,
etc.)
Community Toilet Complexes are generally found in slum areas
where they are maintained by an NGO such as Sulabh International
or by the government municipal corporations themselves or
through contractors. Community Toilet complexes are oriented as a
‘at home’ kind of toilet with provision for bathing and washing
clothes for the slum inhabitants. General Public Toilets are also
maintained by organisations like Sulabh International or by NGO’s
or by the government through private contractors.

References:

4 
 
 1.9:Business Model :Stakeholders in Public Sanitation and their
Contributions

Most of these Community Toilet Complexes and General Public

Toilets are based on the pay and use model.But there are free toilets
run by the Muncipal agency also. In New Delhi, a BoT(Build, Operate
Transfer) arrangement was tried by the New Delhi Municipal
Corporation(NDMC) and subsequently by the Municipal Corporation
of Delhi(MCD) with private contractors mainly advertising agencies to
run public toilets. The private players were to pay a lump sum amount
annually depending on the number of seats in the toilet and were free
to generate revenue from lease of advertising space and collection of
charges from users. Simultaneously Community Led Total Sanitation
(CLTS) which makes a community responsible for the facilities it is Image 06: Advertising on walls of
provided with, even though the capital cost is usually borne by the public toilets to generate revenue
Governmental agency or NGO ensures the maintenance and
sustainability of the toilet facility

1.10: Technologies In Use And Parallel Developments:

Sewage Disposal:

The main types of disposal systems in use can be classified into on-site
disposal and off-site disposal systems .
Image 07: Conventional Sewer
Currently most of the public toilet facilities in the study area work Line Connection
with connection to the sewerage system and come under off-site
disposal systems. Such disposal systems are expensive to construct and
operate and are huge financial overload for developing nations. Also it
becomes practically impossible to cover the entire urban area of a
country with such systems because of the cost and in developing
nations, the demand always exceeds the availability of such systems.
Other issues include clogging of sewer lines because of overload,
illegal sewer line connections, sewage backflows, contamination of
ground water and mixing of storm and waste water increasing the
expense of sewage treatments. Also fundamentally the sewer line
technology is flawed because it dumps the nutrients that are collected
through waste into rivers and water bodies while ideally the nutrients
must be returned to land to complete the nutrient cycle. [8]
For a developing country like India with limited infrastructure in
sewer coverage, a more appropriate technology is on-site disposal
technology.

On-site disposal refers to the treatment of waste within the area of its
origin . Presently followed techniques include the septic tank system
leading to a soak pit or leeching field. The organisation Sulabh Image 08: Twin Pit Pour Flush
International pioneered the use of the twin pit pour-flush toilet which toilet developed by Sulabh
eliminates the need for manual scavenging and ensures proper International
elimination of pathogens on site. Additionally these toilets use a
redesigned toilet pan that uses only 1.5 -2.0litres of water against a
conventional 10.0 litres[9].

References:
8: <Sunita Narain> Ecologically Mindless
9. Sulabh Technology
 

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 A pit is used for a period of two years and then the waste is diverted
to the second pit while the waste in the first pit is allowed to compost
turning into odor-free manure which can be removed manually. An
alternate system of waste disposal is to use it to generate bio-gas which
can be used for cooking, producing electricity and as fuel for gas
mantle lights.

1.11: Women and Public Toilets:

Women are one of the most affected groups due to poor public
sanitation. The lack of hygienic clean toilet infrastructure for women
was highlighted in a study by Sheikh(2008)[10] Women are forced to Image 09: Lack of signage to
control their urge to use the toilet until they find a clean toilet .Also existing facilities results in open
the lack of clean toilets places strain on their menstrual hygiene and defecation at Nehru Place
health.. The issues highlighted showed that women are reluctant to use
public sanitation if they perceive it to be unhygienic, unsafe and
unclean In another study conducted by GMR Varalakshmi
Foundation, 64.2% of the surveyed women population observed they
had a bad experience in public toilets. [11]
1.12: Studies of existing Public Toilets:
Case studies were conducted on public toilets across different
localities within New Delhi which included a photographic
documentation, calculating average number of users and interviewing
the caretakers of the facilities in question. The case studies were
conducted at the following localities:
a) Nehru Place
b) Sarai Kale Khan Image 10: Lack of a visible
c) Maharani Bagh Identity for the toilet complex
d) New Friends Colony
e) Lotus Temple

In addition an online survey was administered to a sample group that

included male and female users to understand their perceptions about
public toilets.
1.13: Findings from the study

Identity and Visibility:

Most of the toilets visited very not visible or were concealed behind
other structures making it difficult to find the toilet. Also lack of
signage leading to toilets becomes an issue for way finding.

Appearance:
Most of the toilets visited had a very shabby appearance both inside
and outside. This causes people to avoid them and generally gives Image 11: Unhygienic
them an impression of the toilet being unclean. Pale colours when surroundings impede entry into the
used generally gave a feeling of spaciousness and cleanliness. But mud toilet and influences users to avoid
from the shoes of users dirties the floor when such colours are used the toilet.
and then result in a dirty appearance.

References:
10. Shahana Sheikh < Public Toilets in Delhi- An emphasis on the facilities for Women >
11. Students of Dept. of Social Work, Osmania University< Why Women Don’t use Public Toilets>

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 Broken elements such as doors , fixtures further adds to this
 
perception. Poor lighting results in filthy looking toilets

Hygiene: yes
Wet floors, dirty walls stained by gutkha patches, broken patches of no
tiles and dirt stains give a general impression of unhygienic
surroundings. Mud dragged in by users forms muddles of dirty water.
Poor construction results in damp walls which result in unbearable
toilets. Poor hygiene is a major reason why people avoid public toilets
Image 12: Do you ever defecate in
as deduced from the survey. the open in case of emergencies?

General Upkeep:
Toilet fixtures are broken and become unusable. Cigarette packs,
gutkha packs , tissues and other foreign objects clog up the drainage
system. The floor needs constant cleaning by the caretakers because of
mud puddles.
dirty 
Vandalism: and 
Toilet fixtures are stolen, such as mugs, wash basins . Fixtures are Unhygi
destroyed by vandals thus bringing the operations of these facilities to enic
a halt. Walls are dirtied with paint, and gutkha stains . smells 
bad
Odour:
Bad Odour emanating from these toilets keeps people from coming to
these facilities. Surrounding areas to the toilet are also affected by the
bad odour. In the survey carried out , it was observed that bad smell no 
was the main issue why people avoided public toilets. water/ 
paper
Lighting:
Most toilets use a mix of artificial and natural lighting. Natural Image 13:: What are the main
issues you face with public toilets
lighting gives a cleaner and more hygienic impression of the space
within.

Basic Services:
Water:
Water is not always present for cleansing and washing down the filth rarely
which results in dirty toilets. Water must be carried individually to the
toilets from a central tank.

Electricity: on a 
Electricity to drive water pumps is in erratic supply thereby affecting routine 
the usability of the toilet. basis

Drainage: on a 
Lack of complete sewerage connection results in limitation in daily 
providing toilets in areas of need. Where on-site disposal means such basis
Image 14: How often do you use
public toilets?

References:

7 
 
 as septic tanks are used, the toilets have to be de-sludged periodically
toilet 
rendering them unusable for a time period. Where de-sludging
paper
equipment is not present, either illegal manual scavenging is practiced
or the toilets are shut down. water
Provisions for Women
Dustbins, clothes hooks and a provision for keeping hand bags are health 
missing . As such ,the disposal of sanitary pads into the toilet results in faucet
 
clogging up of the toilet drainage. Privacy in terms of the layout of the
toilet in some cases is not guaranteed and women do not like to use bidet
 
them. Perception of public toilets not being safe.
Universal Access:
Only one toilet of the surveyed lot had provisions for disabled people. Image 15: What is the most natural
Other Provisions: means of cleansing yourself after
using the toilet
Lack of proper system for keeping luggage while using the toilet
Business Model:
The pay and use model is expensive for the lower strata of urban
society which then resorts to open defecation.
Number of Visitors:
The number of people visiting was on average about 71 men and 6
women in a period of twenty minutes.This would imply a daily crowd
of about 3000 people to a public toilet placed in an area with high
traffic.

1:14: Formulation of Design Brief:

Qualitative Specifications and Constraints: 
S.No  Quality  Need
1 Identity & Visibility Should be identifiable from a distance in urban areas
2 Appearance Should be inviting , and clean on the inside and outside and 
Should promote hygienic practices in the area in disposal  
3 Hygiene and Sanitation of excreta with no open contact with it
4 Odour  Should prevent bad Odour from emanating from the toilet
Should prevent stealing and damage of fixtures,  
mugs ,doors and clogging of drainage channels by foreign  
5 Vandalism objects
Should be easy to maintain by one caretaker for a  
6 Maintenance and Upkeep set of four modules
Should reduce the water load necessary for cleansing  
7 Water and washing away filth
Should reduce the dependence of electricity  
8 Electricity for daily operation
9 Drainage Technology on‐site bio‐digester technology
10 Manufacturing Technology Steel Fabrication
Ease of  Should be  Easy to assemble on site once it is  
11 Construction/assembly fabricated at plant
Should promote personal hygiene traits such as  
12 Personal Hygiene washing of hands ,and break lines of disease transmission 
13 Privacy Fully covered , enclosed type
Indian  citizens in urban areas across lower ,  
14 User Background middle and upper strata of society

8 
 
 15 User Sex Unisex
16 Special Provisions  Dustbin, Clothes Hook, Luggage rack
17 Cleansing Method Water
18 Posture Indian Squat  Type
19 Usage Patterns All Weather
20 Ownership Communal
21 Business Model Pay And Use / Advertising/ Governement Subsidized
Government through local agency such as Muncipality  
22 Ownership Agency or corporation

Quantitative  Specifications and Constraints:
S.No   Quantity   Value
1  No.Of users  3500 People daily for a combination of 4 units 
2  Volume of Waste:  311 g/person/day and 0.6 to 1.1 litres per person per day 
Average income expected 
3  /day  Rs800 
4  Cost Of Biodigester alone  Rs.15000 

1.15: Need statement:

To design a public toilet module that serves to eliminate open defecation and promote
sanitation and personal hygiene in unserved urban India

Bibliography:

Websites:

1. http:/ /www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/factsheet.html
2. India’s Sanitation for All:How to Make it Happen< http://www.adb.org/Water/Knowledge-
Center/Books/Indian-Sanitation.asp.>
3. Sekhar Bonu and Hun Kim/Sanitation In India:Progress, Differentials, Correlates, And
Challenges<http://www.adb.org/Documents/South-Asia/Occasional-Paper/India-Sanitation/default.asp
>
4. Economic Impacts of Sanitation in Southeast Asia Summary
www.wsp.org/UserFiles/file/411200810059_EAP_ESI_summary.pdf
5. Sanitation is vital for health
http://esa.un.org/iys/docs/IYS%20Advocacy%20kit%20ENGLISH/Fact%20sheet%201.pdf
6. Sanitation is vital for health
http://esa.un.org/iys/docs/IYS%20Advocacy%20kit%20ENGLISH/Fact%20sheet%201.pdf
7. Population growth, Trends, projections, challenges and opportunities.<
http://planningcommission.nic.in/reports/wrkpapers/wp_hwpaper.pdf>
8. Sunita Narain/ Ecologically
Mindlesshttp://www.ecosan.nl/content/download/542/4177/file/Down%20to%20Earth%20flush%20toilet
%20ecologically%20mindless.pdf
9. Sulabh Technology/ http://www.sulabhenvis.nic.in/Sulabhtechnology.htm/
10. Shahana Sheikh /Public Toilets in Delhi- An emphasis on the facilities for Women .../ 
<ccs.in/ccsindia/ecatalyst/december08/Shahana.pdf>
11. Students of Dept. of Social Work, Osmania University/ Why Women Don’t use Public Toilets/
<www.gmrgroup.in/Foundation/images/2.pdf>

9 
 
 Visual Credits:
Image 01: Untreated sewage and uncollected solid waste block drainage and pollute waterways
(Source : India’s Sanitation for All: How to Make it Happen )

Image 02: : The sanitation problem is most evident in urban poor and rural communities, and affects women
and children in particular
(Source : India’s Sanitation for All: How to Make it Happen )

Image 03: With improved sanitation facilities in place, children do not have to play in dirty areas (Source :
India’s Sanitation for All: How to Make it Happen)

Image 04: :Dirty State Of Slum Sanitation

(Source http://web.worldbank.org/
Image 05: Open sewers in slums lead to bad odour and causes health issues
(Source : http://www.ete.wur.nl/NR/rdonlyres/6D5953A6-F8CE-43E8-80EB-
8B8BF4E1383B/44925/postertobiasbigamboplaatje1.JPG)

Image 06 Advertising on walls of public toilets to generate revenue

(Source : Author.>)

Image 07 Conventional Sewer Line Connection (Source: Compendium of Sanitation Systems And
Technologies)

Image 08 Twin Pit Pour Flush toilet developed by Sulabh International

(Source: www.sulabhenvis.in)
Image 09-11 Case Studies ( Source: Author)
Image 11-14 Results of online survey carried out by the author
(Source : Author.>)

Appendix -1

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Questionnaire of online survey conducted:

Survey Available at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QJ9QGVZ

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