The colonial administration in British India relied on sweeper labour force to empty bucket household toilets daily, rather than installing sanitation systems. In the 20th century, along with the Indian Independence Movement, the issue on sanitation and sweepers became notably articulated with the social reform struggle, especially in Hindu society. The people who are generally believed to have been the most prominent activists in this struggle, were not only Dalits including the sweepers themselves but Mahatma Gandhi and his co-workers or followers. Gandhi and Gandhians, contributed to the development of low-cost flush toilets. They did not necessarily facilitate the introduction of modern, mechanised, and sanitary engineering-based technology. They explored solutions that would achieve both the improvement of unsanitary conditions of local communities and alleviate the social discrimination against sweepers and scavengers. Gandhi dealt with the problem of sanitation both in India and Indian communities in the British Empire, and the social discrimination against the scavengers who were engaged in the manual removal of human waste in bucket latrines. This opened the way to low cost flush toilets.
Gandhi's heritage in 2024
The Sulabh organisation developed interested options that are still valid today. To admire different options, a visit to the World Toilet Museum in New Delhi (India) is well-recommended.
