Clean Bathrooms and the comfort they give to students

In many Indian academic institutions, the bathrooms won’t be much cleaner. It may not seem like a serious predicament, but it is something that really affects students and their ability to learn. This discomfort is increased by the fact that the place they are in might be an unexplored alienated territory surrounded by unfamiliar faces.

Students feel uncomfortable in college bathrooms for two major reasons; the first one being the improper maintenance of the washrooms in schools, colleges and universities. This unhygienic practice leads to a higher chance of break out of diseases thereby causing several health issues as well as psychological tension among the students. The second reason being hundreds of students using the washrooms every now and then, and not all of them make sure that the bathrooms remain completely clean after they use them. These are the two main bathroom-related problems that students find difficult to deal with, regularly.

For example, if a student needs to go to the bathroom and waits till break time only to find that it is in a filthy state, what is he/she supposed to do? Due to unclean toilets, most of the students frequently suffer from urinary tract infections and the pungent smell is more than enough to choke someone. This is just one example of many such situations which are regularly experienced by people. One of the most frightening and horrible prospects for a student is the urgency to use the washroom, only to find it in a dampened state.

These unhygienic conditions of toilets in educational campuses are a mockery of the much-hyped ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ launched by the authorities. These dingy toilets are the source of infection and can cause severe problems for the students of the college. Such situations are confronted by students all across the country on a daily basis. It is one of the main reasons’ students remain apprehensive about living a daily life at hostels at any point in their career.

As a student of XIM University, we can say that we had a really good experience with the bathrooms in both the hostel as well as in my academic buildings. They are cleaned regularly and most people who use the washrooms make sure to clean after their use. The same, we would say, was a big relief for us and made our daily life as a student so much more convenient and hygienic.

If you too find yourself in a situation where your college/university does not look after the proper maintenance of their bathrooms or students do not keep them clean, you could easily rectify and ensure this with some interesting bathroom signs in and around the bathroom to encourage cleanliness. If that does not help as well, the best thing to do is approach your college authorities directly and get the problem fixed.