I know some foreign returned Indians who find it difficult to pass stool in Indian toilets. “I need to a dump in a western toilet”, they say. Biologically, squatting is the best position for addressing to nature’s call. It’s natural after all. For a long time through human evolution, we squat. Sitting in a chair-like is relatively new progress. While it is completely one’s personal preference, it is also funny to note that the western-style toilets were actually invented in India.
According to Wikipedia–
By 2800 BC, private bathrooms, located on the ground floor, were found in many houses of the Harappan civilization. ‘Western-style’ toilets were also made from bricks and used wooden toilet seats on top.
The drainage system during Indus Valley Civilization was equally advanced. Pottery pipes in walls allowed drainage of water and there was, in some case, provision of a crib for sitting in toilets. The waste was then transmitted to drainage systems. Large scale sanitary sewer systems were in place. The sewage was then led into cesspools, built at the intersection of two drains, which had stairs leading to them for periodic cleaning. Plumbing was done using earthenware plumbing pipes with broad flanges for easy joining with asphalt to stop leaks was in place. Sanitation was a major part of lives of Indians. An interesting historic view of the same-
सौरभ राय | Sourav Roy 