The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has issued a directive to all state governments to ensure that 25% of public toilet seats added in any city or urban unit are “aspirational toilets.”

What are Aspirational Toilets?

• The aspirational toilets scheme was launched in September 2022 as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) 2.0, with an aim to help make cities open defecation free.
• A quarter of all new public restrooms in Indian cities will soon have high-end features such as luxurious bath cubicles, touchless flushing, breast-feeding rooms, and automatic sanitary napkin incinerators.
• These will be indicated as “aspirational toilets” on Google Maps.

Focus areas for constructing aspirational toilets

• The focus areas for constructing these luxury toilets will be tourist and religious destinations, as well as iconic cities.
• High-footfall locations such as markets, railway stations, inter-state bus depots, and national highways will be given priority.
• Guidelines have been issued to the states for constructing these toilets. It also includes low-height toilets and basins for children.
• Hand-dryers, paper napkins, and vending machines for sanitary napkins are proposed to be made available.

Maintenance and funding patterns

• One of the business models being explored for the maintenance of these toilets is attaching them with other public services such as restaurants, shopping malls, libraries, cinema halls, or even medicine shops, to make them self-sustaining.
• Experts have cautioned that a proper study must be done on the location and the way these toilets will be maintained before beginning any such project.

Back2Basics: Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) 2.0

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