Waterless Toilet Design For Railways, designed by Manipal University Student!
Vinod Anthony Thomas, a tenth semester student of Faculty of Architecture (FOA), Manipal University, has clinched the second prize at a public competition for designing waterless and odourless toilets for the Indian Railways. The idea behind the competition, organized by Research Designs and Standards Organization, Lucknow, was to design a toilet which does not give off a foul nor uses any water for operation and maintenance. Vinod designed a toilet which does away with problems in the existing system of disposal of human waste on the tracks which is, according to him, “unhygienic, unethical and damaging to the environment”. His project also mentions that there is no effective flushing in the existing model, which results in accumulation and foul smell. According to a release by Manipal University, his design replaces the present system with a conveyor which carries waste in a hermetically sealed pocket to a large collection bin to store waste. It is run manually by a cra