Marvel at toilets

Emerging alternatives

A novel project in Kerala tries to introduce a sanitation technology that promises a cleaner and healthier environment

Why alluvial flood plains of north Bihar need alternative sanitation system

Flood is a recurring threat to the sustainability of open defecation free status in Bihar. Unique toilets, built on elevation, can show the way ahead

Excreta as resource: Looking at recovery, reuse of faecal sludge in UP

A critical link in faecal sludge and septage management value chain is reuse of by-products generated, which include treated water as well as …

Where do Indians defecate?

Half of India's population defecates in the open. In all probability, they will continue to do so for the next 10 years

People do pay for latrines

India’s sanitation economy to double by 2021

It would be worth $62 billion in three years and the credit would go to Swachh Bharat Mission, say speakers at 18th World Toilet Summit

Lack of toilets, how much it costs India

Inadequate sanitation has economic impacts across sectors like health and tourism; cost the country 53.8 billion USD in 2006

Thumbs down

Bioremediation works

Appetite for sewage

Bacteria feed on pollutants in sewage, kill odour, but are they a complete solution?

Govt shifts focus to sustaining sanitation coverage

The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation prepares a rural sanitation strategy to maintain open-defecation free status and clear up waste issues

Doubts dog toilet-building campaign

Over half a billion, which is nearly half of the country’s population, defecate in the open

Gandhian Sanitation: How Kolhapur combined toilet design, biogas to treat faecal sludge

Almost 75 per cent of the district depends on properly designed septic tanks; around 25 per cent of it uses biogas-linked toilets at …

Poverty and inequality a threat to urban poor: UN report  

Multidimensionality of urban poverty and inequality should be at the centre of interventions to create an inclusive and equitable urban future …

No death due to manual scavenging; 941 died while cleaning sewers: Union minister

As many as 58,098 were working as manual scavengers in India as of 2018

The missing manual scavengers of India

Government surveys are confined to statutory towns, highlighting the fact that the Centre looks at it as an urban problem

Fetching water from miles away increases risk of death: UK study

'Children of women who fetch water in this manner are especially disadvantaged'

Cleaning a dirty patch

There has been a massive spike in constructing toilets in record time in Gonda district. But it remains to be seen whether it would lead to real …

Climate change will increase severe stunting by 55 per cent in Sub-Saharan Africa: report

Sub-Saharan Africa is particularly vulnerable to the health risks of climate change because of weak systems in health, infrastructure and environment

Toilet inside, defecation outside: Govt missing the mark?

Toilets are being constructed at a high rate, but their usage remains a problem

Will centralised waste disposal work for Punjab?

Safe waste disposal is a big challenge for the national sanitation overdrive. Punjab has been experimenting with centralised systems to tackle …

Inaugural issue of Down To Earth Hindi exposes poor progress of Swachh Bharat Mission

Besides pointing out the associated risks of poor sanitation, the analysis also shows the enormous challenge before the NDA government

Globally, one in four children is stunted

India is home to the largest number of stunted children in the world

Facts and figures all you need to know about the state of sanitation in India