## 1. How to build the most scalable and sustainable public toilet model

Hey everybody. I've spent a fairly unreasonable amount of my young life thinking about public toilets. Let me show you why. I want to take you to a street in Hyderabad, beside Hussain Sagar.

Source/context: Lumbini Park · Original project photograph, July 2026

## 2. The street I grew up with.

Growing up, I'd come to this part of Hyderabad almost every weekend. Loads of people. Something to eat. Somewhere to walk. But if you cannot find a toilet you can use, how long can you stay? Think about women, families, older people. That's where I want to start.

Source/context: Hyderabad archive · Photos provide location context, not a documented before/after

## 3. Let's build it.

This illustration explains the street I remember. First we clear the rubbish and repair the walking surface. Then we replace the inadequate provision with one integrated LooCafe. The shop is at the front. The toilets are accessed from the side and toward the back. The shop operator earns here, and that revenue helps support cleaning and maintenance. Advertising on the upper panels is another source of revenue. Now let me show you those parts in the real photographs.

Source/context: Illustration of the narrated street · Not an as-built reconstruction

## 4. This is the standard LooCafe.

Here's the real Banjara Hills unit. The shop and toilets are one structure. Look at the corner: the retail frontage is on one face, and the toilet entrances are along the side. The upper panels give us advertising space. Those are the parts I want you to keep in mind as we build the explanation.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 5. Inside the toilet: privacy, fixtures and finish.

Inside, we want it to look really good. You should feel comfortable walking in. Clean surfaces, lighting, the details you actually touch. Aspiration matters here. We want to set a standard that people expect, and that the operator takes pride in maintaining. A clear entrance. A private cubicle. A space that looks as though someone cares about it. These are basic design decisions with very real consequences. Think about the approach, the signs, the door and privacy. A wheelchair symbol by itself doesn't solve access. The whole route and the space inside have to work. That's part of making the perfect toilet.

Source/context: Original project / Toilet Tales archive · Interior and entrance details across sites

## 6. “Make sure that it looks really awesome.”

From the inside, it looks really posh. One of the things we want to build with LooCafes is aspiration. That's the standard we want to set. This isn't just a nice front on a toilet. The place you actually use has to receive the same attention. Here are the cubicle finishes and the way the fixtures are arranged.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 7. The entrance is part of the toilet.

The design starts before somebody opens a door. Can they see where to go? Is the entrance obvious? What does the approach feel like? At Mangalagiri you can see the entrance frontage, handrails, signs and planting together. These details are part of making a public toilet usable. A photograph alone is not an accessibility audit.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 8. What makes the model worth repeating?

These are the values I mean. A usable toilet, a safe approach and privacy. A viable business. Someone checking the work. And a proper destination for the wastewater.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Design and operating principles from the presentation brief

## 9. The front shop helps fund the toilets behind it.

Back to our street. Now look at the shop. Its role is to give someone an ongoing business here, linked to keeping the public facility working. The shop is somebody's livelihood. A partner has an establishment, customers, and a place to take responsibility for. Commercial activity can contribute to maintaining the toilets. But that responsibility has to be explicit. A counter by itself doesn't make cleaning happen. This is a person running a business. The model has to make sense for them too. Revenue has to cover the actual work of keeping the toilet usable. And look up. These panels are another potential source of revenue. They're also a very visible part of the street. In Karnataka, that surface should belong to the place. The important commercial question is how committed income pays for the service over time. There is also someone there. You can ask for help. An active frontage and lighting make the place more approachable. Safety still needs privacy, good design and operating procedures. The shopkeeper is part of that.

Source/context: Toilet Tales archive · Retail and advertising surfaces; operating-model explanation

## 10. The shop is an operating business.

Let me show you the shop properly. Here is the fitted counter, and here is a food counter in use at another unit. There is stock, equipment and a person running a business. That business helps pay for care of the public toilets. Advertising provides another income source. The point is to connect an everyday livelihood with an everyday maintenance responsibility. These photographs show different units; they are not a before-and-after pair.

Source/context: Company photographs · loocafe.com/gallery; Toilet Tales 2.1, PDF p. 18

## 11. ACCOUNTABILITY

Accountability has to include the things that go wrong. A ceiling needs repair. A drain needs attention. Someone has to notice, someone has to act, and someone has to check the work. These are original photographs from our Dog Park status report: the damaged ceiling is in the section labelled before, dated 9 September 2024; the other ceiling photograph is in the report dated 13 September. They are different views, so I am not claiming an exact matched cubicle or a four-day repair guarantee. The point is that operating a toilet includes maintaining the asset after opening day. Now let me show you the workflow.

Source/context: Dog Park, Gachibowli · Site status report, 13 Sep 2024, pp. 7 & 10 · Different camera views

## 12. Accountability: record, check, resolve.

This illustration explains the accountability loop. It is not an app screenshot. The operator records the work, a supervisor checks it, and problems need an assigned response. The real interface screens belong alongside this explanation.

Source/context: Explanatory illustration · Not a photograph or verified app interface

## 13. The operator knows what is due today.

This is our actual operator app, running with a test account. The operator opens it and sees what is due today. Upload cleaning photos. See the next shift. Report a maintenance issue. You shouldn't need a complicated system to make the everyday responsibility clear. This screenshot shows the workflow; it is not evidence that a particular site completed today's work.

Source/context: Actual Android emulator capture · Local QA operator and unit; demonstration data

## 14. Turn a problem into a maintenance ticket.

When something isn't working, the operator needs a clear way to say so. Here is the actual maintenance form: title, description and photographs. That gives the next person something concrete to review. Creating a ticket is the first step; assignment, response and closure still need to be managed. We shouldn't claim a response time without the operating records. The leaking-tap description is an illustrative draft entered into the actual form. It was not submitted as a real site fault.

Source/context: Actual Android emulator capture · Illustrative draft entered in the app; not submitted

## 15. Open the record. Inspect the photographs.

Here is an actual record from our dashboard. These are the photographs submitted for one evening review. You can inspect the fixtures, see the timestamp and see the recorded location. That makes the work visible. It does not, on its own, prove that every part of a toilet is clean or that a fault has been repaired. That still needs a check and a response. This is the bridge between the operator’s phone and the person overseeing the service.

Source/context: Actual dashboard.loocafe.com capture · LC_ID_023 evening review, 7 Sep 2026 · Submitted record, not independent verification

## 16. A livelihood, with responsibility.

Here is a real example from Toilet Tales. Asif had run kirana stores. With LooCafe Mini, he took a different route: bike repair, using skills his father had taught him. The profile describes him starting the day by cleaning the toilet before working at the repair station. This is what I mean by agency: someone bringing a skill and a business to the site, with responsibility for a public service. The archive records that story; it does not provide verified current earnings.

Source/context: Toilet Tales 2.1, p. 27 · Centre person removed from right-hand photograph; original retained

## 17. LooCafe Mini: a smaller unit, the same responsibility.

Look at the Mini from both sides. The counter faces the street and the toilets sit beside it. The small format still needs access, water, cleaning and a suitable wastewater route.

Source/context: Original Mini photographs; historical signs retained

## 18. Mini: what fits, and what still needs space.

The website describes an eight-by-eight-foot Mini with two toilets. That is the product description, not the total site allocation. An accessible approach, utilities and maintenance still need space.

Source/context: loocafe.com Mini description; website-stated dimensions, site requirements vary

## 19. Toilet Tales: a place to earn.

Reuf had run an electrical shop. His Toilet Tales profile describes moving into a LooCafe stall and caring for the washrooms daily. It is a specific livelihood story, not a fixed-income promise.

Source/context: Toilet Tales 2.1, PDF p. 28; interview-time account

## 20. Toilet Tales: care is work, every day.

Mahboob found work at a stall after losing his job during the pandemic. His profile records washroom care twice a day. This work needs clear responsibility and support. The account describes employment, not ownership.

Source/context: Toilet Tales 2.1, PDF p. 26; not a current inspection

## 21. LooCafe Mini: a shop and toilets in one small unit.

Here is another Mini in its real street setting. The shop and the toilet are part of one small unit. Look at the entrance and the space around it, not just the box. The footprint may be small, but access, cleaning and a wastewater route still have to work.

Source/context: Original LooCafe Mini archive; photographs show design and setting, not measured performance

## 22. DRNF: free chai beside public sanitation.

The same physical format can also support a different service model. These DRNF-branded counters offer free chai alongside public sanitation. The photographs show the counter and toilet access together. Free chai is a service commitment; we should explain who funds and operates it rather than assume the usual retail economics.

Source/context: DRNF chai-counter archive and LooCafe Mini archive; funding arrangements vary by site

## 23. Different streets. A repeatable service.

Our work across India shows that range. Srinagar, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mangalagiri. Different surroundings and formats. Scaling means repeating the service as well as the structure. Here it is beside Dal Lake. Difficult connections or constrained access make the infrastructure question very real. Now look at what happens after someone flushes.

Source/context: Original archive · Dal Lake, Chennai and Mini examples; not all are ReFlow installations

## 24. Our footprint: different cities and settings.

These are real locations in our wider LooCafe work: Mangalagiri, Chennai and Mumbai. I'm showing the places because the footprint is more than a number. Each site has its own space, users and operating conditions. These photographs document LooCafe locations; they do not mean every one has ReFlow treatment.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 25. From Hyderabad parks to Dal Lake.

In Hyderabad, look at the park setting. Then look at Dal Lake in Srinagar. The setting changes, but the public still needs a toilet they can find and use. The treatment route and maintenance plan have to suit the location.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 26. A toilet can belong in a well-designed public space.

You wanted to go for a good stroll. The toilet should feel like it belongs in that public space. Here is the approach at Mangalagiri. Then look at the illuminated frontage at Tank Bund: the entrance, signs and planting are visible together. The photograph shows the design; it does not establish a lighting standard or an accessibility audit. Greenery must not get in the way of the entrance or the person maintaining it.

Source/context: Company photographs · loocafe.com/gallery and reflowtoilets.com · Locations as documented

## 27. Scalability starts in the workshop.

How does this scale? Part of the answer is here, before the unit reaches the street. We build the enclosure, fit the interior and install the components. Repeatable fabrication helps. It still needs site preparation, installation and commissioning. I wouldn't confuse placing the structure with having a treatment system ready to operate.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 28. A unit directory gives the network a shared record.

This is an actual capture of dashboard.loocafe.com. The directory currently contains 110 records: 44 marked operational and 66 non-operational. Those are database labels, not an independently verified uptime survey or the complete historical deployment footprint. That is exactly why a shared record and field checks belong together. Do not repeat the earlier claim that 150 units are all maintained from this evidence.

Source/context: Actual dashboard.loocafe.com/units capture · Registry status, not audited service availability

## 29. LooCafe’s published city footprint.

These are the cities plotted on our website. The dots show city-level presence, not every toilet address. This published footprint differs from the live register and from the subset with ReFlow treatment.

Source/context: loocafe.com city map; city coordinates, not unit-level status

## 30. But where does the flush go?

Now come back to our street. In our company letter of 11 April 2023, we reported that the NTR Samadhi Mini had moved ten metres and had no drain connection available at the new location. That is a company-reported relocation problem, not an independent engineering inspection or proof of a later solution. It makes the infrastructure question concrete: where does the flush go? The CPCB 2021 report gives us a useful national baseline: about 72.4 billion litres of sewage generated each day, against 20.2 billion litres of actual STP utilisation in its 2020 inventory. Those are historical national figures, not ReFlow results or current coverage. A city needs suitable sewer connections, appropriate local treatment and a service that keeps operating. The treatment route must fit the site. Installed capacity and verified treatment are different measures.

Source/context: CPCB, March 2021, Fig. 3.1: 2020 inventory · Ixora relocation letter, 11 Apr 2023: company-reported case

## 31. The same street. The sewer beneath it.

Look below the same street. A sewer carries wastewater away, but it still needs working downstream treatment. This cutaway explains the connection; it is not a survey of the pipes under Lumbini Park.

Source/context: Generated cutaway of the existing illustrated street; not an as-built survey

## 32. Bring treatment to the site.

The left photograph shows the Lumbini Park installation; the right is a factory view of treatment equipment and pipework. Wastewater comes into a managed treatment process. The flow is collected and regulated. Biological treatment reduces the pollution load. Further treatment and disinfection prepare the water for its intended reuse. It goes into storage and returns to flushing. Each of those steps has a specific job. There are anaerobic and aerobic stages. Microorganisms do much of the work of reducing the pollutant load. The blowers support the aerobic process. And biology needs time to establish itself. We can place a prefabricated structure quickly, but we still have to commission the treatment and verify what comes out.

Source/context: Original Lumbini and factory photographs · Factory equipment is labelled separately

## 33. Outside: the enclosure. Inside: the equipment.

Now look at the physical engineering. Here's a factory enclosure, and here are the tanks and pipework inside. The equipment needs space. People need access to inspect it and maintain it. These factory photographs explain the packaging; the precise configuration has to be matched to the installed unit.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 34. The public side and the service side.

The user sees a private cubicle. The maintenance team needs to reach the treatment equipment. Both have to work in the same system. That's why I want you to see both sides, rather than just the attractive exterior or only a process diagram.

Source/context: Sources: loocafe.com/gallery · Company photographs; locations as documented

## 35. Follow the water.

Toilet wastewater is collected and regulated. Biological stages reduce the pollutant load. Further treatment and disinfection prepare the water for flushing reuse. The ECR is additional treatment for high load or unstable effluent in this manual. It is not a box we should casually draw as always running. This is non-drinking reuse.

Source/context: BCRT O&M manual, Aug 2024, pp. 6–8 (printed) · Simplified selected configuration

## 36. The treatment stages—and the return to flushing.

Here is the whole process in one image. Collection, biological treatment, further treatment and disinfection, then reuse for flushing. The additional ECR is conditional in the selected manual. The equipment shapes are illustrative. Makeup water, power and managed residuals remain part of the operating system.

Source/context: Based on BCRT O&M manual, Aug 2024 · Conceptual equipment shapes; not to scale

## 37. The engineering is in the operating limits.

We can manufacture the structure. We still have to commission the biology. The manual describes seeding and progressive loading. Tank levels gate pump and UV operation, and overload protection matters. This is why I want to talk about the operating system around the technology, not just the hardware.

Source/context: BCRT O&M Manual, Aug 2024, printed pp. 12, 14–15, 23 · Documented configuration; actual control-panel photo

## 38. ReFlow issues can be tracked by component.

This is the actual ReFlow dashboard interface, with the product’s DEMO dataset visible. It illustrates component-based maintenance: the affected part, the person raising it, priority and status. The ticket examples are demonstration records, not evidence of faults at the installation. The treatment monitoring demo contains unverified performance and circularity statements, so I have not used it as measured treatment evidence. The table has been redrawn for legibility from the actual demo interface. All four ticket IDs, subjects, components, names, priorities and statuses were compared with the source screen. It is not an untouched screenshot.

Source/context: ReFlow dashboard DEMO workflow · AI-cleaned reproduction; original capture retained

## 39. BCRT: read the specification before sizing the site.

These numbers belong to the forty-foot, seven-cubicle manual. They cannot be used as the rating of a different installed unit. Installed power is not daily energy use. Match the equipment schedule and commissioning record before quoting site capacity.

Source/context: Concept illustration · BCRT O&M Manual, Aug 2024, cover and printed p. 3; reference configuration only

## 40. BCRT maintenance needs access and trained people.

The service passage is not leftover space. Someone must inspect equipment, reach valves and replace failed components. Cleaning the cubicle and maintaining the plant are linked jobs, with different skills. The original user-supplied views show signage and the feedback panel. The manual also specifies maintenance and restart planning. Cleaning products must be compatible with the biological process.

Source/context: Original factory photograph; BCRT O&M Manual, printed pp. 2, 18–23

## 41. A loop has responsibilities.

The return arrow is flushing water. There is still makeup water, electricity, consumables and a residuals route to manage. Our job is to measure what crosses that boundary. Circularity is not a reason to make those responsibilities disappear.

Source/context: Concept illustration · BCRT O&M manual; non-potable reuse and managed outputs, not an as-built diagram

## 42. Measure the difference.

We are seeing around 400 people a day pre-launch, as our team reports. That is an activity figure, not a hydraulic rating and not a measured water-saving result. To quantify impact, we need reuse and makeup meters, energy data, availability and treatment-quality results over the same period. That is how a pilot becomes a credible case for scale.

Source/context: 400 people/day: speaker-reported pre-launch activity; period and count method unverified

## 43. One unit becomes a managed network.

Now pull back. The ambition is a network of dependable public services. A repeatable design, an operator at each site, maintenance that reaches each unit and treatment that is verified. That is how a smart public toilet contributes to a better city.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Proposed service-network illustration · Not a deployment map

## 44. Citywide sanitation uses more than one treatment route.

Now pull back from the toilet to the city. This is a schematic illustration, not a map of one city. The point is to connect local treatment, sewered treatment and managed residuals into a dependable sanitation service. We should choose the right route for each site.

Source/context: Concept illustration · NIUA handbook, 2019, pp. 19, 23–27, 40–43 · Not a city map or piping plan

## 45. Come and look inside.

People come to the site, walk through it and discuss the engineering with us. I'd like to extend that invitation to you. See the actual place, the team and the treatment process. Ask us the difficult questions.

Source/context: Original ReFlow visit photographs · Lumbini Park

## 46. The market: different ways to fund and run a toilet.

This compares operating approaches, not brand rankings. Municipal and pay-per-use toilets can work well. Retail and advertising can support access. ReFlow adds treatment duties; it still needs an operator and maintenance budget.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Analytical comparison: MoHUA sanitation guidance, NIUA and company model documents

## 47. Standard LooCafe and LooCafe with BCRT.

Standard LooCafe is the facility and business model. BCRT adds treatment. Both need daily care. The plant also needs commissioning, sample results, technical maintenance and a residuals route. Choose the configuration for the site.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Company model explanation and BCRT O&M Manual; no comparative performance trial

## 48. The business has to pay for the service.

Sales are not profit. Look at what remains after running the shop. Add committed advertising or service payments. That income must cover toilet operation, plant care and a replacement reserve. Build the business case site by site.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Commercial planning framework; no site-specific profit or return claimed

## 49. PPP: agree who provides what.

PPP means public-private partnership. Name what each side provides, who carries each risk, how the service is paid for, and what happens when standards are missed. Agree the allocation for the actual project.

Source/context: Concept illustration · DEA PPP guidance; illustrative allocation, not agreed Karnataka terms

## 50. A contract can cover years of service.

The August 2020 GHMC certificate describes a fifteen-year concession including operation and maintenance. It describes thirty-six locations but lists four completed. This is evidence of a long-term structure, not a current deployment count.

Source/context: Concept illustration · GHMC experience certificate, 7 Aug 2020, archived 07-08-2020.pdf

## 51. Karnataka: procure the whole service.

For Karnataka, I want us to think beyond procurement of a structure. Choose the site and treatment route properly. Make operating responsibility clear. Verify treatment and reuse. Measure availability. Then scale what works, alongside the city's wider sanitation network.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Proposal for discussion · Karnataka wastewater-reuse workshop: PIB, 8 Nov 2025

## 52. Karnataka: start with sites that need a service.

Start where a usable toilet is missing or unreliable. Check demand, access, utilities and the wastewater route. Some sites suit Standard, some Mini, and some may justify local treatment. Do not prescribe the same box everywhere.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Karnataka proposal; site categories, not confirmed sites or approvals

## 53. Karnataka: put the operating duties in writing.

Who opens it? Who cleans it? Who handles a failed pump? Put those duties in the agreement, alongside escalation, inspections and replacement funding. That makes accountability something we can act on.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Proposed service requirements; subject to procurement and agreement

## 54. Karnataka: measure the pilot before expanding.

The first sites must answer the questions for the next ones. Was the toilet usable? Did treatment meet the requirement? What did it cost? Keep records over the same period, then choose where to expand.

Source/context: Concept illustration · Pilot evaluation proposal; no completed results or rollout commitment implied

## 55. A better city starts here.

This started with a street I grew up walking on. The ambition is bigger now: a public toilet people want to use, a livelihood with responsibility, and treatment that belongs to the city's sanitation system. Come and visit us. Let's look at what it takes to make this work for Karnataka.

Source/context: Lumbini Park · Scan for the presentation notes