It pays to go in an Indian public toilet

EARNING A DOLLAR: Dozens of people are queuing up to use toilets in Musiri in Tamil Nadu.

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Keywords: Hygiene, Research

New Delhi: It pays to use a toilet in southern India, as residents are earning close to a dollar a month by using public urinals, a scheme launched by authorities to promote hygiene and research in rural areas.

Dozens of people are queuing up to use toilets in Musiri, a remote town in Tamil Nadu, where authorities have succeeded in keeping street corners clean with the new scheme, a newspaper said on Sunday.

"In fact, many of us started using toilets for urination only after the ecosan (ecological sanitation) toilets were constructed in the area," said S Rajasekaran, a truck cleaner.

The urine was also being collected and tested for its efficacy as a crop fertiliser, an official of the state's agricultural university added.

People relieving themselves in the open are a common sight in India's rural towns and villages, as basic sanitation still eludes millions.