For the first time in Indian Railways, a set of such toilets has been installed on a trial basis in one of the AC-I coaches of Dibrugarh Rajdhani.
NEW DELHI: Stinking toilets in trains may soon become a thing of the past. Indian Railways is gearing up to replace all conventional toilets in the trains with "bio-vacuum toilets". Officials said these environment-friendly toilets consume less water and also help in preventing corrosion of rail tracks.
For the first time in Indian Railways, a set of such toilets has been installed on a trial basis in one of the AC-I coaches of Dibrugarh Rajdhani at an estimated cost of about Rs 3 lakh. Officials said after completion of successful trials, around 80 such toilets will be installed in a Shatabdi Express for which the department may float global tenders inviting multinational companies from USA, Germany and Spain.
According to the Delhi division officials, the vacuum toilets installed in the trains in foreign countries have a retention tank placed under the coach. It holds all human waste that is flushed out of the toilet. The toilet then needs to be evacuated at terminal stations, making involvement of municipal corporations necessary in the process.