GUWAHATI: Under the Guwahati Smart City Mission, twenty (20) water ATMs and thirty (30) bio-toilets, have been taken up at selected locations in the city.
A bio-toilet and a water ATM was inaugurated by Siddhartha Bhattacharya, Guwahati Development Department (GDD) minister, Government of Assam, at the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital premises on Thursday. The locations for the services have been chosen in such a manner that maximum number of citizens avail the benefits.
The project cost for the water ATMs is Rs. Rs. 2.09 crore and includes operation and maintenance by the contractor. The project cost for bio-toilets is Rs. 9.53 crore and includes operation and maintenance.
WATER ATMs
Each water ATM is equipped to dispense water in the volumes of 250 ml, 1 litre, 5 litres and 20 litres. Paper glasses for dispensing 250 ml of water will be provided by the contractor at the water ATMs. The rates for water have been fixed at Re 1 for 250 ml; Rs. 5 for 1 litre; Rs. 10 for 5 litres and Rs. 25 for 20 litres. The price has been kept substantially lower than the market rate. The water will meet all the treatment quality standards assured the government.
SMART BIO-TOILETS
The smart Bio-toilet unit is a modular, pre-fabricated unit and is integrated with user-friendly electronic interfaces. They are unmanned, automated smart toilets having remote monitoring facilities by integrating electrical, mechanical and GPS technology. The toilets are provided with a bio digester tank for hygienic decomposition of the soil waste and discharging environment safe effluent. The technology behind the Bio Digester system is Anaerobic Bio-Digestion.
Features of Bio-Toilet
· Each unit has 1 toilet seat each for male and female with benches, napkin incinerator and female friendly features.
· The entry to the toilet is controlled through a coin-insert mechanism.
· Even if the user forgets to flush after usage, automatic flush is generated after the exit.
· Further automated floor cleaning is activated through a 'programmed to function' after a usage by 5 users.
· This unit is connected to an anaerobic bio-tank/bio-digester with DRDO approved technology for minimum of 200 users per day with a capacity of 10,000 litres.
The operation and maintenance of these 30 units will be done by the Contractor for one year and it may be extended up to 5 years depending on the performance.
The charges for water and electricity will be borne by GSCL. The revenue generated from the applicable user charges and also from commercial advertisement in the space available will go to the Guwahati Smart City Limited's account.