KOLKATA: It is invisible to the naked eye and originated in the uninhabitable climes of Antarctica. This humble bacteria — known as Psychrophile — holds the potential to solve India's sanitation problem in the years to come. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is using these bacteria for the bio-digester technology it developed for disposal of human waste in an eco-friendly manner. DRDO has already tied up with the Indian Railways for bio-toilets on trains. On Sunday, the technology will be inaugurated on Sunday at Dhamra in Odisha in the presence of Jairam Ramesh, Union minister of rural development, drinking water and sanitation.It was Ramesh's caustic remark in May that got the DRDO involved in installing the odourless bio-toilets that it had developed in rural areas.
The minister had rued the fact that while India is capable of launching inter continental ballistic missiles like Agni and satellites, women still don't have access to proper sanitation. According to him, 60% of women in the country do not have access to toilets. Immediately after this, DRDO took it upon itself to take up rural sanitation as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility. The location chosen was Dhamra, which is close to the spot from where the Agni-V missile was successfully test-fired recently. Read more
Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com
