Indian Railways is working on new chemicals, Internet of Things (IoT) and standardised watering systems to solve the biggest complaint of passengers- dirty and unhygienic toilets.
According to a report by The Economic Times, this issue has been discussed by the senior railway officials in a recent meeting. A government official said that this meeting was conducted by the Railways after there were several complaints on the platform through grievance redressal. “To address the high volume of complaints regarding foul smell figuring in the Rail Madad app, the Railway Board has recommended testing new IoT-based technology for foul smell detectors,” said the official in a statement to Economic Times.
Indian Railways has shortlisted Viliso Technologies, a Mumbai based startup for testing the new IoT-based technology for foul smell detectors. This startup specializes in odor monitoring.
How will the technology be used?
According to the report, the technology will be used in some coaches of the Linke Hofmann Busch and Integral Coach Factory variants to study it’s efficacy and monitor the functioning of onboard housekeeping service systems. The Railways is also trying to resolve this issue for the new premium Vande Bharat (VB) sleeper variant trains.
“The BEML-make sleeper VB trains have an ergonomically designed odour-free toilet system,” said another official, suggesting that the Vande Bharat trains will feature a hot water shower in the first AC category cars.
Besides adoption of new technologies and making advanced facilities available for the commuters, the national transporter is also planning to introduce innovative methods which are conventional such as the use of cleaning chemicals. Clonon concentrate has been recommended by the Railway Board to clean the toilets in trains, offices and platforms. Pune-based product manufacturer- Dimple Chemicals & Services claimed that the use to Clonon concentrate kills odour- releasing bacteria and proposed it to the Railway Board to be used for cleaning purposes.
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