Uncover Chennai’s Unique Walking Tour: Exploring Public Restrooms
Delve into Psychology, Vandalism, and Sanitation at Chennai’s Toilet Festival 2025
This summer, take a break from Chennai’s traditional landmarks and embark on an extraordinary journey through the city’s public restrooms. The Greater Chennai Corporation, in partnership with WASHlab, an initiative dedicated to enhancing sanitation practices in Chennai, is hosting the third edition of the International Toilet Festival 2025 in June.
A Month Filled with Activities
- Identifying and mapping Chennai’s open defecation areas
- Conversations on empowering sanitation workers
- Speakers from various sectors discussing cleanliness challenges
The festival will also include toilet walks centered around vandalism, dirtology, and toilet shame. The dirtology walk, for example, will shed light on the types of dirt, stains, and waste discovered in public toilets.
Enhancing Sanitation Workers’ Lives
WASHlab carries out sanitation audits for the corporation and pinpoints areas for improvement. According to GCC commissioner J Kumaragurubaran, they are planning to implement measures such as:
- Collaborating with Co-optex to design uniforms for sanitation workers
- Increasing the availability of PPE kits
- Providing changing rooms
- Ensuring sanitation workers are registered with the Sanitary Workers Welfare Board
The GCC has already distributed welfare board membership cards to over 5,000 individuals, enabling sanitary workers to access benefits like accident and distress relief.
Challenges and Necessary Policy Reforms
While contract and GCC sanitation workers receive some benefits, informal sanitation workers in the private sector often face social exclusion and lack official employment recognition or insurance benefits. They typically earn as little as Rs 5,000. The government must ensure these workers are registered with the sanitation welfare board.
