Dustbins and Toilet Stink in Trains

Dustbins in Trains. :
There has been noticeable improvement in the Cleanliness in some trains and particularly in premier classes, for example in Shatabdi and A / C class seats as well as births ; this I consider a long stride by a huge organization to justify the start and realization of cleanliness in trains. Railways has to march further forward to come to high standards, to catch up with the expectations of Prime Minister, Railway Minister and the travelling public.
Now we have started finding Dustbins ; but the number is insufficient , keeping mind the number of passengers in each compartments 108 in 2S and little less in C.C ,Shatabdi ; the helpless passenger sees the bin full the first instinct is to dump it in the toilet of throw out of the train in to the country side .In the double decker day trains, consider each deck to have bins ; if bins are not there in each deck ,the lazy passenger leaves the trash wet or dry in the pouch . If not cleared in time attracts insects and cockroaches. No doubt there is paucity of space ,it was probably designed as a commuter train . Wherever it is not possible to provide more bins to suit the capacity to generate trash, manually collect double decker in trays / baskets . We did see this practice in some trains some time back ; there was also a practice to collect from the way side railway stations in some trains. But for some reason we don’t see now a days : any hassle ? When collected manually there is a grave danger of him throwing out of the door into the country side.[Swachh Bharat will be after the Railways as they have a drive to bring back the pristine beauty of the country side and also take up the issue as an environmental one . Swachh Bhrat’ s meticulous eyes can make out the rail trash from the domestic local one !] . This manual collection can be [if no space to provide bins in double decker ]collected totally for the train and plan to be down loaded in ways side stations and disposed in collaboration with the local bodies. Make sure it is not given to the garbage syndicate who exchange garbage for betel nut and tobacco packets in return. This is true of the Premier trains which serve food on the ticket. ; further with the improvement of lifestyle the capacity to generate trash as they have also gone up. Trash in the form of package materials of food and snacks , tea coffee cups juice containers ,fruit peals and so on. These Garbage collected from trains may be given at notified centers in that particular route for mass disposal /treatment in collaboration with the local administration. Dustbins to be periodically changed or fumigated . He can also segregated trash at least in the premier classes and trains to start with .

Solutions :
1. Provide more bins to suite the amount of garbage generated.
2. Where there is no provision to provide more bins , attendants to clear the bins when ¾ full and gather and dispose in a designated place.
3. In double decker where the lower and upper decks don’t have provision for bins make arrangement for manual collection .
4. Care should be taken to dispose the trash /garbage responsibly and not to throw in the tracks and spoil the pristine beauty of the country side ; this can be done in collaboration with the local bodies .
5. Fumigate the bins or replace them time to time, to prevent insects multiplying and create an ideal environment for disease causing bacteria.
6. Kindly keep in mind [provision of adequate number of dustbin] While designing the future compartments ; let the designers kindly keep in mind this aspect also and make provisions to collect garbage from for 100 passengers in day train sitting compartments and for 72 /64/48 for the sleeper compartments compulsorily .As we have advanced in and our life style and comfort , we have also advanced in generating more trash at home as well as while travelling.
7. Will it be too much to ask for segregation in the trains itself before disposal as the bins are being cleared by the travelling staff .

Toilet Stink in Trains :
There are quite a few reasons attributed to the stink in the toilets in the trains : The toilets in the A / C compartments have fans for comfort; may be it is also expected to drive the devil out through commode . We have wondered how the stink persists despite the fans in the toilets; because there are no exhaust fans in the toilets ; it is must when it is used in a mass scale 24x7x365 . When the train is on the move we witness and experience air coming through the commode outlet which acts as inlet into the toilet ; Now with that wind power provide a self propelling exhaust fan.[without power – the flow of air from outside will propel the toilet exhaust fan and take the stinky air out ]
The second reason for the stink is insufficient water and insufficient pressure in the flushing system. There are many reasons for this situation : Water tank is just a few feet above the out let, so the pressure is not sufficient to flush the faeces sticking to the sides of the commode . The taps are perennially leaking [after sustained complaint I have seen some short term measures adopted in some trains – Thanks Railways -probably we have to specify the trains and compartments ]. The flush buttons are not functional or wrong ones are used ; very often they get stuck, either doesn’t open or doesn’t close ; The spay holes in the commodes, too less or are blocked so all areas are not supplied water equally with enough pressure ; so a lot is left out in the commode that is the culprit that causes stink. Try spray taps as provided in A /C coaches . The provided ones don’t have a strong holder ; was seen broken , and on the floor . Once on the wet floor no one will ever touch it again and it will ever be etched their memory. But make sure it works and pressure is sufficient to flush the faeces ; make also sure that it doesn’t leak ;Make sure while providing, provide good spray faucets and not cheap unknown company’s. If it is too very cumbersome resort to the age old manual method of cleaning the toilets in selected junctions. Fix the spray faucet rest in appropriate place so that no part of it touches the floor. Spray of fragrance is not at all the solution ; remove then, clean the toilet properly , prevent the stink and then a mild spry should be the procedure . Mostly substandard materials are purchased on large scale that encourages lot of malpractice leaving the passenger / user in the lurch. Avoid this and provide good and lasting stuff ; that will avoid frequent purchase and save for the railways.
“Keep the toilet dry and clean” – the notice is still there ,a bit faded in the toilets in 3 languages . We don’t see any toilet dry at all ; it is dry only when there is no water. Water stagnation leads to people not going closer to the toilet seat. It is actually the duty of the railways to offer the passengers an atmosphere of dry toilet , if not dry toilet itself. When we analyze the cause for the toilet getting wet , it is the slope which is a culprit ; that never inclines towards the outlet ; I don’t know how undulations appear on the floor of the toilet ; not just in ordinary class but also in A/C and Shatabdi. As a result there are puddles and stagnation of water ; this leads to the passengers don’t not standing close to the commode while passing urine and mothers make the children pass at the entrance itself. The coach builders should know this and pay extreme attention while making rail coaches at least in future. But for now to at least to drive the stink away the flooring should be attended to immediately. In western toilets [not in the recently built coaches.]the moving space is very restricted and the mirror is provided on opposite side of the outlet ; passengers have to stand almost near the outlet which is invariable wet and the passenger walks out with wet foot right up to their seats. Imagine if just a third of the 64 sleeper passengers do this.

Solutions :
1.Provide exhaust fans in the toilets [self propelling ones without power as the strong draft from outside through the commode will propel and drive out the stink]
2. Strengthen the pipelines, taps so that proper pressure is in the water to wash the necessary waste from commode.
3. Check the water outlets in the commode , could be clogged with the salt deposit from the water over the years ; appropriate chemicals can decongest them.
4.Keep the toilet dry :Ensure proper flow of water towards the outlet ; no stagnation in the toilets.
5. In western toilets [not the recently manufactured ones]the moving space is very restricted, shift the mirror to the water outlet side so that passenger can stay on the less wet side.

We have to be cautious and wake up to the way substandard materials are ourchased and not let some unscrupulous elements fritter away the hard earned money of railways and the gullible passengers. Take complete control of the purchase to see that quality materials are purchased . Railways are paying the officers and the staff well ; they don’t need bonus from outside. more