Juhi Chawla and Shankar Mahadevan during Swacch Navi Mumbai Abhiyan
Vashi: Bollywood celebrity, Juhi Chawla along with renowned singer/composer Shankar Mahadevan appreciated the ‘Smart She e-toilet’ project of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC). The facility was thrown open for the public on 8th January, 2017 at Vashi bus depot in Navi Mumbai. They along with NMMC Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe visited the facility.
The Smart She e-toilet is an exclusive offering for women with the provision of a separate rest room, equipped with a chair, a wash basin a mirror, and facilities for baby feeding, changing diapers etc.
This is one of the 12 e toilets which have been opened in various parts of Navi Mumbai as a CSR initiative of the Reliance Foundation and manufactured by Chennai based Eram Scientific. The fully automatic, electronically operated e-toilets incorporate full-cycle approach in sustainable sanitation by integrating convergence of electronics, mechanical, web-mobile technologies thereby controlling entry, usage, cleaning, exit, and remote monitoring capabilities. The insertion of a coin opens the door of the eToilet for the user, switches on a light—thus saving energy—and even directs the person with audio commands. The toilets are programmed to flush 1.5 liters of water after three minutes of usage or 4.5 liters if usage is longer. It can also be programmed to clean the platform with a complete wash down after every 5 or 10 persons use it.
All e-toilets are remotely monitored over a GPRS network and their health status can be accessed over a web or mobile interface by the authorities, which ensures transparency and accountability of operations. The e-toilet mobile app helps to locate the nearest eToilets in the city and give feedback about them. Eram Scientific has now installed over 2000 e-toilets across 21 States and have won over 43 awards and recognition.
The ten e-toilets installed previously in various parts of Navi Mumbai have received positive feedback from the public.
Ankush Chavan, Additional Commissioner, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation shared that the toilet at Vashi bus depot would be a great relief to women, especially for those with infants, as the rest room had all amenities for feeding, etc. it would render the city open defecation-free. It would further be at the forefront of the Swachh Bharat initiative.
Dr. Siddeek Ahmed, Chairman & Managing Director, Eram Group, shared that the company was indeed glad to make positive contributions in the ambitious Swachh Bharat campaign. The solutions given by the company can boost the ongoing drive, making the country open defecation-free. He shared that the offering is a boon for women as they have to face embarrassing situations owing to the lack of proper toilet facilities in public places. He further thanked Reliance and the NMMC authorities for providing them with such an opportunity.
