World Toilet Day 2.0: Why a New Era of Sanitation Should Begin in India

By V. Srinivas Chary, Manjusha Manchala, and Bhavesh Kumar

The "Flush and Forget" Illusion

It's an act we perform every day without second thought. The simple push of a lever or button, the rush of water, and the problem disappears. This act is the "flush and forget" illusion, a convenient belief that once waste is out of sight, it's gone for good. But it's not.

We never stop to ask the critical questions: Where does it go? Who moves my shit? What are its implications? The truth is that every flush isn't the end of the story. It's the beginning of a hidden crisis: wasted water, untreated sewage, disease spread, putting millions of lives at risk.

Your Flush Wastes More Than Just Water

With cities already facing water scarcity, this is a monumental waste of a precious resource. But the crisis doesn't stop there.

Human waste is a microscopic horror film. A single gram can contain 100 billion bacteria, more than the number of people on Earth, along with a cocktail of dangerous pathogens. We are talking about Rotavirus, Norovirus, Hepatitis A & E, Poliovirus, E. coli, Salmonella, roundworm, and hookworm, the culprits behind deadly diseases like cholera, typhoid, and diarrhoea. In most cases (an estimated 70% in urban India), this wastewater goes completely untreated. It flows directly into our drains, rivers, lakes, and groundwater, contaminating the very water sources we depend on for survival. Every flush isn't the end of the story. It's the beginning of a crisis: wasted water, untreated sewage, disease spread, putting millions of lives at risk.

Sewers are an Outdated Solution That Can't Keep Up

The sewer system, the "gold standard" of sanitation, is a 150-year-old Victorian design. It was a revolution in 19th-century London, but it is a poor fit for the challenges of fast-growing, water-stressed countries like India. The reasons are clear:

High Cost

The cost of building and maintaining vast underground sewer networks is astronomical.

Massive Resource Drain

Sewers require a tremendous amount of clean water to move waste and an enormous amount of electricity to power treatment plants.

Slow Implementation

Laying sewer lines is a lengthy process that requires digging roads for years.

Dangerous for Workers

The system is prone to blockages, sometimes forcing sanitation workers to enter the lines, exposing them to immense danger.

The statistics paint a stark picture: only about 30% of urban households in India are connected to a sewer system, and even then, only 28% of the wastewater generated is treated. This 19th-century solution is too expensive, slow, and thirsty to meet modern needs.

The Septic Tank "Fix" Created a New, Invisible Threat

To address the sanitation gap, the Swachh Bharat Mission led to a massive toilet construction drive. Under the mission, communities and governments built more than six million individual household toilets and over six lakh public and community toilets in urban areas, most of which are connected to onsite septic tanks or pit latrines. At first glance, this looked like a breakthrough. The toilets were quick to build, less costly for the government and citizens, and used less water than sewer-based systems.

But there was a catch. What happens when the tank fills up? The thick, black sludge that settles at the bottom must be emptied. In most cases, this untreated sludge is evacuated and dumped in open fields, storm drains, canals, or water bodies.

It's like sweeping dirt under the carpet. The house looks clean, but the mess hasn't gone anywhere.

The irony is profound. While the mission successfully provided dignity and solved the problem of open defecation at the front end, it created a massive, invisible environmental and public health crisis on the back end, leading to widespread groundwater contamination, environmental pollution, and community exposure to disease.

The Future is a Toilet That Cleans Up After Itself

The solution lies not in bigger pipes, but in smarter toilets. This idea isn't just a theory. In Warangal, a city struggling with overflowing septic tanks and contaminated water, a technology called the Eco-Biological Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant is already demonstrating this future. It takes human waste and, in just hours, turns it into clean water and biochar, a valuable soil conditioner. It is a good start.

What if we could take this powerful treatment capability and shrink it down? What if the toilet itself became its own mini treatment plant? The concept is simple but revolutionary: Plug. Flush. Treat. Re-Flush. A new generation of "circular toilets" is being designed to be self-contained, resource-recovering systems with evolutionary functions:

• They treat human waste right where it is produced
• They kill deadly pathogens onsite
• They recycle the treated water for re-flushing
• They use a fraction of the flushing water required by conventional toilets

This shift represents a technological leap on the scale of the smartphone revolution. Just as mobile phones evolved from basic calling devices into powerful digital tools, toilets are now evolving from simple waste-disposal units into compact, sophisticated resource-recovery systems. These next-generation toilets can treat waste at the source, eliminate pathogens, recover water for re-use, and generate valuable by-products such as biochar or nutrient-rich outputs.

This evolution is not incremental progress. It is a quantum leap for sanitation and public health, one that can dramatically cut water consumption, reduce disease exposure, and relieve pressure on overburdened sewer and septic systems. The toilet is no longer just an endpoint; it becomes a treatment node in a circular, climate-resilient sanitation ecosystem.

SBM 3.0: The Circular Toilet Revolution

The "flush-and-forget" era is over. Whether it is centralized sewer networks or onsite septic tanks, the evidence is clear: our current sanitation systems are struggling in many cities. They move clean water, release untreated waste into the environment, and expose communities to significant health risks. We can no longer afford solutions that move the problem from one place to another. It's time for flush, treat, and re-flush solutions.

But this shift will not happen on its own. It requires intent, investment, and leadership. Swachh Bharat Mission 3.0, post 2026, can be the defining force behind this transformation by accelerating the adoption of circular toilets. Technologies for on-site treatment are developed globally, and several are rapidly maturing. India must move quickly, supporting R&D institutions, startups, and private-sector partners to localise these innovations and develop India-centric solutions. What is also required is a clear policy for scale that proven technologies can move rapidly from pilots to widespread adoption.

What Needs to Be Done?

Policy Support

Governments must formally recognise circular toilets as the next generation of sanitation systems. Some of the actions include developing clear technical standards, strengthening R&D, supporting pilot deployments, and embedding these solutions into urban planning frameworks, building guidelines, and sanitation strategies.

Pricing and Incentives

Just as solar adoption and electric mobility through subsidies and innovative financing, similar tools are needed for sanitation. Smart incentive can make circular toilets affordable for households, institutions, sanitation, and commercial establishments. The economic case is strong: these systems save water, reduce load on sewer networks, lower treatment costs, and contribute to climate adaptation.

People Engagement

Transformative change will take hold only when communities recognise the value of safer, cleaner, and more sustainable sanitation options. Awareness campaigns, demonstration sites, and strong partnerships with utilities, innovators, and the private sector will be key to driving demand.

Why Does It Matter?

Imagine a city where rivers run clear again.

Imagine communities free from the burden of waterborne diseases like diarrhoea.

Imagine a future where every flush conserve water rather than wasting it.

This future is achievable. The circular toilet revolution is not theoretical; it is emerging, proven, and urgently needed.

SBM 3.0 is India's opportunity to launch the Toilet 2.0 revolution: systems that treat waste at the source, protect public health, conserve resources, and build climate-resilient cities. World Toilet Day 2025 is the moment to commit to a new era of sanitation. India should lead it.

---

V. Srinivas Chary & Manjusha Manchala

I look forward to your comments, views and critique. Please feel free to write to me at: vedala.srinivaschary@gmail.com