use the utilisation procedure in such a way as to make the disposal aspect more econo mical. The answer obviously is utilisation for greater agriculture production by reclaiming land, providing irrigation and increasing the fertility level of soils around towns and cities. According to "Rudoe" the use of human excreta for fertilizer-ranging from Night-soil application to irrigation with sewage or polluted river water is a world wide practice. The economy of such highly populated countries as China and India would be wrecked without human manure". The tendeny even in the western count. ries in recent years has been towards adopt ing designs and installations of sewage systems of a disposal cum-utilisation pattern. In the U. S. A, Europe, Australia and even U. S. S. R. Sewage is now an important source of supplemental irrigation for agricultural crops. Moreover, Paris, Berlin & London utilise sewage for irrigation at their sewage farms in appreciable land areas. Delhi is now using sewage irrigation in approx. 3,000 acres but even then 40 M. G. D. is flowing down the river Jamuna, The W. H. O. expert committee on environmental sanitation has stated...... "with the growing world population and the limited extent of world resources, all efforts to utilise sanitary by-products and their return to the soil should be encouraged. The necessity of controlling these activities in such a way as to reduce to an absolute minimum their inherent public health hazards cannot be too strongly empha sized". Now that potable water supplies have been made available in nearly 205 towns of U. P. covering a population of nearly a crore, provision of surface and sewerage drains has to be speeded up with a view to total disposal of sewage and sullage from the cities and towns on the one hand and utilisation projects for the effluents on the other, towards greater agricultural production. If the U. P. towns have to be fully covered with this essential service, we need finance to the tune of nearly Rs. 80 to 95 crores during the three five years plans after the IV Plan comes to a completion. This will mean an allotment of Rs. 5 6 crores every year for sewerage and sewage utili. sation works within the coming 20 years, Perspective planning therefore assumes greater significance in this area of National Development. As the sanitation bazard grows in pros portion to the population explosion in urban habitats and also as a result of sewerage and drainage schemes currently being completed or undertaken in most of the big towns, the effluents-whether dischar ged through surface drains both kacha and pucca; sewers or 'Ganda Nalas' taking the course of the natural and existing land topography and slopes, have ultimately to be tamed and tapped for preliminary treatments and systematic disposal in the best possible manner with a view to reduce the health hazards inherent in an out-dated and outmoded system of backward sanitary arrangements, after rendering the used water and the excreta ir nocuous, in the context of 'Pollution' of bodies of waters and human environments currently highli ghted the world over. A planned sewerage and drainage system has to be evolved for each town to carry the effluents to a location where it can be primarily treated before disposal and secondly to be used for economic gain of the local body, the farmer, and the community, by using it as an irrigant, free from odour nuisance, viscocity, health hazards and in a condition tolerant to farm crops, For this to be possible, a phased Master Plan for each town needs to be taken in hand for speedy execution as per the finances available. It is not possible to give 'Blanket recome mendations' in this regard as an 'Omnibus' treatment of the Problem may be most disastrous. There should be technical personnel locally available to work out details. For a 1000 acre farm a revenue of nearly 3,00,000 to 6 lakhs will accrue @ Rs. 300/to 600/- per acre per year and, therefore, The Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited is the single largest producer of plant nutrients in the country. HOW BIG IS FCI ? FCI's five functioning units at Sindri, Nangal, Trombay, Gorakhpur and Namrup have the installed capacity of half a million tonnes of plant nutrients. This will rise to over two million tonnes when additional six plants under construction go on stream. TOTAL FERTILIZER TECHNOLOGY-FCI has now developed its own know-hows, design and engineering capability and can execute six to eight modern fertilizer plants at a time from the blueprint to the final commissioning stage. It has also developed and produced a complete range of fertilizer catalysts. MARKETING SET-UP-With a vast network of sales outlets and promotional activities, FCI now serves about 80 per cent of the country. THE FERTILIZER CORPORATION OF the cost of maintenance and staff will be very easily met out of the farm receipts. To conclude, Sewage utilisation and farming has so far received only a lukewarm treatment due to other priorities like water supply and sewerage schemes. This inequality has definitely to go and if sanitation has to be ensured & pollution avoided, there is no other way out than to give more atten. tion, time and a higher priority to the scientific handling, treatment and disposal of effluents for greater production of food and raw materials and reduction of health hazards interent in handling and disposal of sullage, sewerage and city & industrial wastes. The Prime Minister has recently given a timely and clarion call for cleanliness and beautification of towns of the country before the 25th anniversary of Independence on 15th of August 1972. We need a cleaner and sanitarily safer India to be a stronger and vigorous Nation. This process needs to be started without any further loss of time as per our resources and genius. Conversion Of Dry Latrines Into Sanitary Ones At Vrindaban Introductory : By Sri A. K. Mittra, EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, XII DIVISION, LSGE D., MATHURA. Mathura and Hathras respectively in the year 1968-69. A special drive to convert the dry conservancy system of latrines into sanitary Works Included & Executed: ones was undertaken during the year 196869 under the 'Gandhi Centenary Celebrations' Scheme. It was felt that in case latrine connections are not made simultaneously in a sufficiently good number with the underground sewerage system of a town where sewers have been laid, the very purpose of laying the underground sewerage system is defeated. The drive for converting dry latrines into sanitary latrines was taken up at Vrinda ban. Past History: Keeping above facts in mind, estimates for Vrindaban, Mathura and Hathras were prepared in the year 1968-69 for the conversion of one thousand dry latrines. The approximate cost was Rs. 13.872 lacs for each of the towns. To attract more consumers, who intended to fix such sanitary latrines in their own houses but could not do so due to the high cost and exorbitant charges of plumbers etc., an economical system was worked out at a cost of Rs. 160/- only for each conversion. This included the cost of internal fitting and supply cost of the materials. Further, to make the drive successful, Government was urged to give grant-in-aid to the consumers to the extent of one fourth of the cost and advance the remaining three-fourths of the cost as loan at nominal interest through the respective local bodies to the consumers. It was proposed that the loan will be recoverable in five easy yearly instalments. The Government agreed to this proposal also and had released Rs. 75,000.00, Rs. 50,000.00 and Rs. 75,000.00 to Vrindaban, Brief Report of the work at Vrindaban and its overall impact on the State. Under the above estimate all the sanitary fittings required for internal connections viz. white glazed W. C. seats, P-Traps, soil pipes, Inspection bends, S. W. pipes, ventilating columns, cowels and the clamps etc. are included along with the cost of dismant. ling the existing seat for the dry latrines, fixing in position the above items, cons tructing the cement flooring and foot rests and making the connections with Inspection chambers including their cost as shown in the enclosed drawing (page 71). All the above items were done for merely Rs. 160/ per unit. The cost of flushing cistern was not included in this amount for the sake of economy and it was envisaged that a bucket-ful of water thrown after use by the consumer would keep the seat clean. Several such band-flushed latrines are in use at Varanasi and have been observed to func tion satisfactorily. However, provision was also made for the fixture to be connected with a flushing cistern, if any individual |