Dhulikhel, 19 November 2021:

The ground breaking ceremony of ‘Inclusive Toilet’ at Kathmandu University was held today on the occasion of World Toilet Day 2021. The inclusive toilet is planned with the objective to facilitate the access of students of all genders and special needs. Special equipment and built of the toilet will be supported by EATHEN Project (Equitable Access to Higher Education for Students with Disabilities and Students from Marginalized Groups in Nepal) co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. Center for Educational Design (CED) at KU is the implementing agency for the inclusive toilet that will be located near to the Technical Training Center (TTC) at KU bus park.

In the ceremony, Prof. Dr. Bim Prasad Shrestha, Principal Investigator of EATHEN Project and Director of Student Welfare shared about the project objectives and idea of the Inclusive Toilet. Prof. Dr. Manish Pokharel - Dean of School of Engineering said, “A toilet is also culturally significant in Nepal. At each household, it represents the understanding of hygiene and the persona of family members”. Assoc. Prof. Brijesh Adhikari, Assoc. Dean, SoE shared, "The master plan of Kathmandu University designed by Danish Architect has most of the buildings with toilets near the entrance with the idea that toilets are the building components that have more movement with need of regular maintenance and cleaning. It also shows the first impression of the building."

Earlier, the toilet design was called with open competition and selected with a committee of jury members chaired by Er. Ganesh Shah, the former Environmental Minister of Government of Nepal.