World Toilet College to be operational from March next year

World Toilet College, being built with an intention to share knowledge about toilets, will come up in Rishikesh.

New Delhi: World Toilet College, being touted as the first such effort being made internationally, will be operational from March next year, its developers announced today on the occasion of United Nations World Toilet Day here.

The first such college, being built with an intention to share knowledge about toilets including its modelling in scientific manners and creating awareness amongst public towards giving up open defecation in line with Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, will come up in Rishikesh, they said.

Informing about the initiative during a conference organised by Jagran Pehel to mark the Day, the developers - Parmarth Niketan, World Toilet Organisation (WTO), makers of Dettol and Harpic RB South Asia - said the college will be open for all those who want to learn and train others in know-how of toilets.

"This college is being developed to impart knowledge relating to toilets. There are so many people working on the issue in the country. All of them need to be given a single platform. All the knowledge has to be brought together.

"A toilet is being built for every 30 seconds. But how to design, build toilets, what should be its model, all these aspects need to be taught about and the same be passed on to others. We will do it through the college. We have built enough temples, now people need to be trained in constructing toilets," Swami Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan (rpt) president of Parmarth Niketan said.

He further said the developers aim to target young children "as they can be easily honed", but added admissions will be open for all "whomsoever is interested in working on the issue".

"We want people with interest in eradicating the problem of open defecation to join us. We are trying to see we do not charge fees to those who want to learn from here," he said.

The first facility at Rishikesh will have a capacity of training 1000 students to begin with, he said. The length of course to be undertaken will vary from three hours to three months, Saraswati added.

The conference was also addressed by chairman of Jagran Pehel Sameer Gupta, WTO founder Jack Sim, Sadhvi Bhagwati Saraswati, sarpanch of Haryana's Gomla village Radhe Shyam Gomla, RB India manager (external affairs) Ravi Bhatnagar and others

"We also want the college to be flexible, in a sense, those who want to learn at the campus, they can come and learn.

"But for those who won't be able to attend the college in person like school-goers, our people will reach out to the schools. So, where is not possible for people to attend the college, the college will reach out to them," he said, adding faculty from world over will impart knowledge at the campus.

The Swami Saraswati further informed the developers are planning to set up second such college in Delhi and open satellite centres in each of the states in line with Centre's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Meanwhile, during the conference, the speakers stressed on developing various designs of toilets in line with local requirements, ones requiring lesser water consumption and sought collective efforts to end practice of open defecation by 2019 as targeted by Centre under the Abhiyan.

"The current problem is we are repeating the same strategies (in addressing the issue of toilet requirements). All money is being used in building toilets, but very little on ensuring behavioural changes," Sim said on the issue of spreading awareness on the issue.