Eco-friendly rail journeys still years away

Chennai:Two years ago, the then union rural development minister Jairam Ramesh of UPA called Indian Railways the “World’s largest open toilet”. Neither the then railway minister nor incumbent Sadanand Gowda of BJP have dared to deny that charge.

 

Perhaps, railways will have to live with that notoriety at least till 2022 –the deadline set by the ministry to retrofit bio-toilets in all its coaches. 

However, in Southern Railway (SR), some progress has been made even though a lot needs to be done for the people to not see fecal substance on the railway tracks, which they would not if passengers use relatively clean toilets on trains and stations.

As on date, about 534 coaches have been fitted with bio-toilets. As many as 316 coaches fitted with bio toilets are formed as rakes in SR. 

 

Of the 269 mail/express and 324 passenger trains operated daily by the SR zone (as on April 1, 2014), 16 express trains have been nominated to run with bio toilet-fitted coaches. 

“All four toilets will have bio-digesters in a few coaches, while it will be two or one in some other (all coaches have four toilets). 

 

We are in the process of converting all four conventional toilets into bio-toilets in as many coaches as possible. Once that is done, we will attach them to trains,” said a senior SR official. 

“Initially, bio-toilet fitted coaches from other trains will be removed and attached to the 16 nominated trains. 

 

Other trains will be taken up gradually. The 2022 deadline applies to SR as well,” the officer added pointing out that the 2022 deadline was only for retrofitting coaches in use and carriages manufactured these days are fitted with bio-toilets at the factory itself.