Rajkot: Smart toilets designed for public sanitation in urban India have a serious problem – extra smart users! At the root of the mess are these untrained, street smart people who have created huge problems for the civic body and left the system almost in limbo.
Rajkot municipal Corporation ,RMC) has built three such smart toilets in the city — at Trikon Baug, and two for the women at the racecourse. However, the civic body is now in a dilemma as people tamper with coin bins outside these toilets, resulting in the failure of the entire system and often locking the user inside the loo!
A coin of any value has to be inserted in the coin box located outside the toilet which will automatically open the door and also turn on the lights. Based on artificial intelligence, these toilets automatically maintain cleanliness and cleanliness after every use through sensors. The doors also close automatically as soon as the user leaves.
The idea of RMC was to create a public sanitation system that would save water and maintain cleanliness and match the image of a smart city. But, in reality it proved to be a headache. “People often tamper with coin boxes in an attempt to open the door without using the coin! This paralyzes the entire system and the toilets get damaged,” said environmental engineer. Nilesh Parmar Told TOI.
According to Parmar, there is no vendor in Rajkot who can repair the system and hence technicians have to be called from Ahmedabad who charge around Rs 70,000 for a one-time fee.
According to officials, the women’s toilet is the worst sufferer in this case as users do not allow the door to close automatically after one use and another enters, causing the entire system to malfunction. This has locked many users inside and they had to be rescued after calling RMC’s helpline.
Rajkot municipal Corporation ,RMC) has built three such smart toilets in the city — at Trikon Baug, and two for the women at the racecourse. However, the civic body is now in a dilemma as people tamper with coin bins outside these toilets, resulting in the failure of the entire system and often locking the user inside the loo!
A coin of any value has to be inserted in the coin box located outside the toilet which will automatically open the door and also turn on the lights. Based on artificial intelligence, these toilets automatically maintain cleanliness and cleanliness after every use through sensors. The doors also close automatically as soon as the user leaves.
The idea of RMC was to create a public sanitation system that would save water and maintain cleanliness and match the image of a smart city. But, in reality it proved to be a headache. “People often tamper with coin boxes in an attempt to open the door without using the coin! This paralyzes the entire system and the toilets get damaged,” said environmental engineer. Nilesh Parmar Told TOI.
According to Parmar, there is no vendor in Rajkot who can repair the system and hence technicians have to be called from Ahmedabad who charge around Rs 70,000 for a one-time fee.
According to officials, the women’s toilet is the worst sufferer in this case as users do not allow the door to close automatically after one use and another enters, causing the entire system to malfunction. This has locked many users inside and they had to be rescued after calling RMC’s helpline.