Solution Exchange discussion - Role of PRIs in Community Water and Sanitation Services - Experiences; Examples

From Barenyo Chowdhury, Indic Knowledge Operations Network (iKOnet), Kolkata

Posted 25 October 2010

I work with Indic Knowledge Operations Network (iKOnet). iKOnet collects data, processes information, manages knowledge and preserves wisdom utilizing the best available Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) infrastructure through a nationwide network.

We are in the process of strengthening our knowledge hub www.towner.in on WASH issues in India . A presentation on the same can be found at ftp://ftp.solutionexchange.net.in/public/wes/cr/res-21101001.ppt (PPT; Size: 2MB).   We are trying to further develop the presentation to elaborate the findings of the secondary research, particularly in relation to the role of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in the planning, maintenance and monitoring of community water and sanitation facilities.

In this regard we are seeking members’ inputs on:

• What is the existing capacity of PRIs to plan, monitor and maintain community water and sanitation facilities?
• Are there any examples that prove that higher involvement of PRIs in planning, monitoring and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities leads to better results?
• Are the design, construction and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities supported by MGNREGS and other livelihood promotion schemes of the central and state governments?

We look forward to receiving evidence/research based findings which will be incorporated in the presentation. As a knowledge sharing exercise, we will be uploading the revised presentation on the website www.towner.in with due acknowledgements to members’ inputs. We hope to update this WASH knowledge base at regular intervals.

Responses were received, with thanks, from

1. Satya Prakash Mehra, Rajputana Society of Natural History (RSNH), Jaipur
2. Krupa Dholakia, Sahjeevan, Bhuj
3. Neelkanth Mishra, FANSA GTF Programme, Hyderabad
4. P S Yadav, Haryana Institute of Rural Development & Department of Development and Panchayats, Karnal
5. Megha Phansalkar, Consultant, Mumbai
6. Nitya Jacob, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), New Delhi
7. J Geetha, Gramalaya, Tiruchirapally
8. J P Maithani, Society for Community Involvement in Development, Chamoli
9. K.N. Vajpai, Climate Himalaya Initiative, Uttarakhand
10. Johnson Rhenius, WaterAid India , Lucknow
11. J.V.R. Murty, WSP-SA, New Delhi
12. Gyanendra Mishra, Unified Development Association for the Amelioration of Neglected (UDAAN) Society, Aligarh
13. Raktim Mukhopadhyay, Development Consultant, Kolkata
14. Joshua Godfrey, Water.org, Tiruchirapally

Further contributions are welcome!

Summary of Responses

Comparative Experiences

Related Resources

Responses in Full

Summary of Responses

Gram Panchayats (GPs) are the gateway for all rural development, and through their Village Water and Sanitation Committees (VWSCs), are tasked with executing water and sanitation projects. However, the consensus among development practitioners as well as panchayat members is GPs usually lack both knowledge and money to carry these out effectively, notable exceptions being GPs in Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat .

Panchayats are supposed to facilitate and implement water and sanitation programmes in their villages, calculate and collect user tariffs, pay pump operators and maintain hardware for water infrastructure. They also have to lead sanitation programmes in the village, mobilize communities and ensure villages achieve and maintain all the parameters specified under Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC). Where GPs have led the process, the results in providing drinking water and maintaining sanitary conditions have been very good; the reverse is also true.

Panchayats have a tremendous potential to make a difference in service delivery of water and sanitation provided they are adequately resourced in the three 3Fs – funds, functions and functionaries. The Centre has a major role to play in the provisioning of the 3Fs through both Centrally Sponsored Schemes and Additional Central Assistance Schemes to the units of self-government. State financial commissions and district planning committees also play a major role in this process.

At a more specific level, GPs have to plan for drinking water while the technical staff in line departments have to be accountable to the VWSCs. Additionally, the Committees should have the flexibility to outsource drinking water schemes in consultation with the gram sabha. However, in practice, most panchayats are not involved in planning for drinking water but are handed over completed schemes for operation and maintenance. These schemes have a high failure rate since GPs and communities have little or no stake in them and panchayats find themselves ill-equipped to work out and collect user charges.

On the other hand, the higher involvement of panchayats leads to better outcomes.  In Maharashtra , for example, GPs and VWSCs have planned, implemented and managed projects that have done very well. In the state, under the Sant Gadge Baba Swachata Abhiyaan, several GPs launched campaigns to improve their villages’ standard of living. In Mahalunge village, Thane District, Maharashtra, participated in the Abhiyaan in 2000 and won several awards. The panchayat president was inspired by Ralegaon Sidhi where Annasaheb Hazare has brought several revolutionary changes. The villagers have achieved and sustained open defecation free status, gobar gas units to process human excreta and cowdung, soak pits to absorb grey water, waste segregation at source and community garbage dumps. Another example is Dhamner village where the sarpanch drove the process of change.

In Haryana’s Sirsa district, the Kaluana panchayat won an award under the State Incentive Scheme for Sanitation as it had led the process of change. It implemented programmes to improve sanitation, solid waste management and rooftop rainwater harvesting, as well as used funds from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for tree plantation and watershed development. Other states where GPs have used funds from MGNREGA for water and sanitation are Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat .

In Andhra Pradesh’s Warangal district, the GP of Gangadevipally village has successfully channelized all development activities, planned drinking water schemes and reduced water consumption by domestic and agricultural sectors. It has commissioned a water filtration plant to remove fluoride that provides drinking water at Re 1 for 20 litres. The GP has set up a committee to ensure nobody defecates in the open by imposing a hefty fine.

There is another equally effective approach where NGOs catalyse the empowerment of panchayats. Gramalaya, Tiruchirapally, Tamil Nadu, set up Association for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (AWASH) committees in 400 villages. The panchayat president is the committee’s advisor and participates in its monthly meetings; thus, the two institutions work closely with each other. Similarly, in West Bengal’s East Medinipur district, the Rama Krishna Lok Shiksha Parishad incubated sanitation programmes and initiated them in its project areas. It involved and built the capacity of panchayats and women’s groups; the Parishad also leveraged funds from UNICEF and the state government.

Sahjeevan, an NGO in Kutch, Gujarat , has trained GPs to manage drinking water schemes; the panchayats had no prior experience in doing so. In Bharatpur, Rajasthan, an NGO has revived several village ponds (pokhars) but those restored by GPs using funds from MGNREGA are in bad shape; leadership and community buy-in are more important than leveraging funds from government schemes.

Thus, these examples show where panchayats have the 3Fs in place, they notch up good results in water sanitation, though the reverse also holds true. NGOs can catalyse this process of empowering GPs as well as communities to demand better services. The experience with funds from MGNREGA and other government schemes is mixed and again depends on the quality of the panchayat representatives.

Comparative Experiences

Maharashtra

Community Campaigns for Improving Sanitation, Mahalunge Village (from  Megha Phansalkar, Consultant, Mumbai)

The Sant Gadge Baba Gram Swachhata Abhiyaan in Maharashtra offers prize money to villages that emerge successful in improving sanitation. Mahalunge Village decided through the Gram Sabha to participate in the campaign. Through peoples’ participation the village was made open defecation free, health indicators improved and water quality tested regularly. Prizes were won under the Sant Gadge Baba Gram Swachhata Abhiyaan and Nirmal Gram Puraskar. Read more.

Andhra Pradesh

Development Activities through Gram Panchayat, Warangal District (from Neelkanth Mishra, FANSA GTF Programme, Hyderabad )

In Gangadevipally village the Gram Panchayat successfully channelized all development activities, planned drinking water schemes and reduced water consumption. It commissioned a water filtration plant to remove fluoride and set up a committee to ensure that the practice of open defecation is stopped by imposing a hefty fine. Every household got involved in one committee or the other leading to true community participation in water and sanitation.

Haryana

Gram Panchayat Leads the Change Process, Sirsa District (from P.S Yadav, Haryana Institute of Rural Development and Department of Development and Panchayats, Karnal)

Gram Panchayat Kaluana led the development process to implement programmes to improve sanitation, solid waste management and roofwater harvesting. It also leveraged funds from the MGNREGA for tree plantation and watershed development. The GP ensured complete community involvement in the process and won an award under the State Incentive Scheme on Sanitation in 2008-09.

West Bengal

Womens’ Groups Manage Water Resources, Purba Medinipur District (from Nitya Jacob, United Nations Children’s Fund, New Delhi )

Under the guidance of Rama Krishna Mission Lok Shiksha Parishad the Gram Panchayat of Lakshya set up women’s groups to manage its water resources. The women in these groups are trained to repair hand pumps and households pay a monthly fee towards the maintenance. Through this approach the GP has moved from providing basic sanitation to improving the overall quality of life.

Tamil Nadu

AWASH Committees and Gram Panchayat work for WASH , Tiruchirapalli District (from J. Geetha, Gramalaya, Tiruchirapalli)

The organization Gramalaya set up Association for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (AWASH) committees in 400 villages. The AWASH committee comprises ward members. SHG members, youth, anganwadi workers, teachers etc. to manage the water and sanitation services. The PRI provides water connections and monitors the quality of water. The Panchayats and AWASH sort out WATSAN problems in close cooperation. Read more.

Related Resources 

Recommended Documentation

From Sanitation to Sustainable Development: Case Study of   Mahalunge village, Maharashtra (from Megha Phansalkar, Consultant, Mumbai)

Case Study; by Megha Phansalkar; Available at

ftp://ftp.solutionexchange.net.in/public/wes/cr/res-25101001.doc (DOC; Size: 190 KB)

Documents initiatives of Mahalunge village in initiating sanitation campaign with involvement of Panchayat  for the  Sant Gadge Baba Gram Swachhata Abhiyaan

From Dreams to Reality-Compendium of Best Practices in Rural Sanitation in India (from J.V.R Murty, WSP-SA, New Delhi)

Compendium; Water and Sanitation Programme and Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Government of India ; New Delhi; September 2010

Available at http://ddws.gov.in/popups/WSP_Compendium_Press_28Oct2010.pdf  (PDF; Size: 2.79 MB)

Documents good practices, lessons learnt and success stories from States while implementing the Total Sanitation Campaign 

From Tina Mathur, Research Associate

National Rural Drinking Water Programme- Framework for Implementation

Guidelines; Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India ; New Delhi ; April 2010

Available at http://ddws.nic.in/popups/RuralDrinkingWater_2ndApril.pdf  (PDF; Size: 1.56 MB)

Recommends transfer of management/financial responsibility to Panchayati Raj Institutions and Village Water Supply and Sanitation Committees 

Nirmal Gram Puraskar Guidelines

Guidelines; Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India ; New Delhi ; 2010

Available at http://ddws.nic.in/popups/ngp-guidelines_March_2010.pdf (PDF; Size: 4 MB)

Seek to recognize the efforts made by Panchayati Raj Institutions in ensuring full sanitation coverage in their areas

Water Democracy: Reclaiming Public Water in Asia

Essay Collection; Reclaiming Public Water Network; 2007

Available at http://www.tni.org/archives/water-docs/waterdemocracyasia.pdf (PDF; Size: 591 KB)

Apart from others, documents experiences in Tamil Nadu and Kerala that community empowerment and local governance are positive tools for improving public water supply

Recommended Organizations and Programmes

Rajputana Society of Natural History, Jaipur (from Satya Prakash Mehra, Jaipur)

Shanti Kutir, Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur 321001, Rajasthan; Tel: 91-9829144163; spmehra@yahoo.com; Contact Satya Prakash Mehra; spmehra@yahoo.com

Works to improve community access to water and sanitation facilities in rural areas of Bharatpur, Rajasthan

Sahjeevan, Bhuj (from Krupa Dholakia, Bhuj)

175 - Jalaram Society, B/h, Vishwamangal Apartment, Vijay Nagar, Bhuj 370001, Gujarat; Tel: 91-2832-251814; Fax: 91-2832-251914; admin@sahjeevan.org ; http://www.sahjeevan.org

Organization working on developing drinking water sources in Kutch and improving their governance through Panchayats

Gramalaya, Tiruchirapally (from J Geetha, Tiruchirapally and Joshua Godfrey, Water.org, Tiruchirapally)

C-62 B, 10th cross, Further West extension,  Near water tank, Thillainagar, Tiruchirapalli 620018, Tamil Nadu; Tel: 91-431-4021563; gramalaya@hotmail.com; http://www.gramalaya.in/

Works on WATSAN issues in Tiruchirapally district through Association for water, sanitation and hygiene (AWASH) and Panchayat participation

From J.P Maithani, Chamoli

Development Centre for Alternative Policies, New Delhi

5, Babar Road , Second Floor, New Delhi ; Tel: 91-11-23353774; Fax: 91-11-23353774

Provides services like water resource development, has documented issues of Panchayat participation in WATSAN services

Society for Community Involvement in Development, Chamoli

Vill/P.O. Pipalkoti, Chamoli 246472, Uttaranchal; Tel: 91-1372-266450; sfcidorgpipalkoti@rediffmail.com 

Works on revival of traditional water sources in rural Himalayas

Society for Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), New Delhi (from K.N Vajpai, Climate Himalaya Initiative, Uttarakhand)

42, Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi 110062; Tel: 91-11-29956908; nfo@pria.org ; www.pria.org  

International centre for learning and democratic governance, has carried out studies on water governance in selected Indian States

Swajal Project, Uttaranchal (from Johnson Rhenius, WaterAid India , New Delhi)

Mussoorie Diversion Road, Makkawala, Dehradun; Tel: 91-135-2744022;

http://gov.ua.nic.in/swajal/

SWAJAL programme involved Panchayats in planning, designing, purchase, implementation and quality control of water supply and resulted in many success stories

From J.V.R Murty, WSP-SA, New Delhi

Total Sanitation Campaign

Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, (Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission), Ministry of Rural development, Govt. of India, 9th Floor, Paryavarn Bhawan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110003 ; Tel: 91-11-24361043; Fax: 91-11-24364113; http://ddws.nic.in

A comprehensive programme to ensure sanitation facilities in rural areas with broader goal to eradicate the practice of open defecation

Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Rural Development, New Delhi

Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, (Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission), Ministry of Rural development, Govt. of India, 9th Floor, Paryavarn Bhawan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110003 ; Tel: 91-11-24361043; Fax: 91-11-24364113; http://ddws.nic.in

Nodal department implementing the water supply and sanitation programmes under the Ministry of Rural development, Government of India

From Joshua Godfrey, Tiruchirapally

Water.org, India

http://water.org/projects/india/ 

Works to provide safe drinking water and sanitation facilities to families in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Tamil Nadu

The Organization for the Development of People (ODP), Mysore

Bannimantap "B" Layout, Mysore-Bangalore Main Road, Next to St. Philomena's College Mysore - 57001; Tel: 91-821-2494195; Fax: 91-821-2497838.; directorodp@gmail.com ; http://www.odpmysore.org.in/; Contact Rev. Fr. J.B.Xavier; Director; Tel: 91-821-2494195; directorodp@gmail.com

Works with Panchayati Raj Institutions in the entire project cycle of WATSAN activities

Mythri Seva Samithi, Bangalore

No.1300-D,1st Crs,1st Mn,Hal 3rd STG, New Thippasandra, Bangalore 560075, Karnataka

Works with Panchayati Raj Institutions on water and sanitation activities

SIDUR, Hyderabad

144/2RT, Vijayanagar Colony, Hyderabad 500057, Andhra Pradesh; Tel: 91-40-66368110; Fax: 91-40-66368109; sidurhyd@yahoo.com; http://www.sidurindia.org/

Works with Panchayati Raj Institutions in the entire project cycle of WATSAN activities

Related Consolidated Replies

Decentralized Models for Providing Safe Drinking Water in Rural Areas, Shital Lodhia, Centre for Development Alternatives (CFDA), Ahmedabad (Experiences). Water Community, Solution Exchange India,

Issued 16/06/2008. Available at ftp://ftp.solutionexchange.net.in/public/wes/cr/cr-se-wes-30040801.pdf  (PDF, Size: )

Seeks experiences which indicate administrative achievability of drinking water supply by involving local people

Responses in Full 

Satya Prakash Mehra, Rajputana Society of Natural History (RSNH), Jaipur

The Rajputana Society of Natural History (RSNH), with the support of OIDB-DRT and BPCL, is trying to improve the access to water for communities in the rural areas of Bharatpur ( Rajasthan , India ). Based on our past experience with PRIs in Bharatpur, here are my responses (these are my personal views and not that of the society):

What is the existing capacity of PRIs to plan, monitor and maintain community water and sanitation facilities?

I feel that PRIs are not involved in the long term planning, monitoring and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities. Their planning is short-term and is based on the funds allocated for the work in the area. Further, their motive is fund utilization rather than proper execution of the plans, and therefore, a lack of quality work.  

Are there any examples that prove that higher involvement of PRIs in planning, monitoring and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities leads to better results?

Here I will quote an example of the work executed as part of the Project Boond V by RSNH. The local leaders were given the responsibility of carrying out the work in their own villages. It was their duty to motivate and encourage the communities to step up and resolve their problems. This worked and the result could be seen in Chak Ramnagar village (Gram Panchayat Khadera, Bharatpur, Rajasthan). This not only united the village but also created an example for the communities in other villages to come forward to resolve their own problems. Now, the Panchayat members and Sarpanchs are approaching the RSNH team to come and support their actions.

Are the design, construction and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities supported by MGNREGS and other livelihood promotion schemes of the central and state governments?

As per the design of constructing pokhars in villages under the MGNREGS, the future of these pokhars is unknown. There are no funds allocated for these and no further work is being carried on either. An example of this can be seen in Achalpura village, Gram Panchayat Murwaqra, Bharatpur, Rajasthan where one can see the conditions of the pokhars constructed under the MGNREGS. These pokhars are a waste of money in my opinion. No provisions are made for filling these pokhars, with rains being the option.  However, I can site an example of a pokhar constructed by RSNH in Nagla Maliyan village (Gram Panchayat Murwara, Bharatpur, Rajasthan). Here one can see the provision of water influx from the surrounding land areas, from the open surface and/or underground connections from far off fields to feed the pokhars. 

Thus, the existing role of PRIs is not satisfactory and to bring a change we have to support, encourage and motivate the local administrators to think about sustainable and long term solutions.

Krupa Dholakia, Sahjeevan, Bhuj

We are an NGO working in the Abdasa block of Kutch district, Gujarat , for the last 20 years on drinking water, animal husbandry and the urban environment. We have helped develop decentralized drinking water sources and improve governance. Under governance, we develop the capacity of the panchayats in each village and the pani samiti to manage their own drinking water scheme. Just now, we have covered 88 villages with drinking water schemes and are working with 15 panchayats to set up drinking water governance models. My response to the questions is given below:

From our experience, we have seen panchayats have little or no experience to plan, monitor and maintain community water and sanitation facilities. However, they set up pani samitis to handle this function but even they are similarly inexperienced. Thus, panchayats and pani samities need proper orientation to take responsibility along with regular interactions and controls.

We have some experience in this area, as mentioned above. We worked with WASMO along with funds from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee and the 12^th Finance Commission.

Neelkanth Mishra, FANSA GTF Programme, Hyderabad

Thanks for initiating a useful discussion topic. I thought all the three questions needs separate set of discussions/experience sharing. I would like to share the experience from a DFID supported GTF program in India . The program aims to develop the capacity of community members to demand for improved service delivery in the water and sanitation sector.

The present capacity of PRI to plan, implement and monitor drinking water and sanitation program is very limited. Although, the government has institutionalize recognizing good performing panhayats/villages as NGP awarded villages but a recent WSP study reveals the fact that even NGP villages are slipping back to the previous status of open defecation.

I would like to share the experience of Gangadevipally village in Warangal district, which is a model in developing a village as an institution. The gram panchayat channelized all the development activities involving every villager. Today, Gangadevipalli has achieved 100% literacy, 100% enrollment of children in schools, 100% tax collection, every house has an individual electricity connection, water connection and a toilet, all families have undergone family planning operations, and have invested in National Small Savings (NSS) schemes. The village also has the unique distinction of being a liquor-free village.

Gangadevipalli, was a small hamlet, which was remote and cut off from the gram panchayath, and no development activity or allocations ever reached the people here. People’s lives were filled with misery and despair. So many things could change, and yet, didn’t because one kept waiting for others to bring about a change in their lives. Over two decades ago the people in Gangadevipalli, decided that they had waited enough. They decided to come together and bring about the change they wanted on their own. The people realized the need for an institution like the gram panchayat wherein all the villagers could come together and collectively act for their own good. Today Gangadevipalli is an example of how a gram panchayat can channelize all the development efforts and transform a small hamlet into an award winning model village. The gram panchayath identified several development issues along with the people of the village and established various committees each assigned to implement a specific development activity. This form of institution-building had all citizens of the village involved. Every household got represented in one committee or another.

Gangadevipalli and its transparent methods of implementing development measures started getting noticed by the government and other agencies. Development activities picked up momentum. All these achievements and so much more are reflected in the numerous awards that Gangadevipalli has won over the years. People have come together and transformed their own lives.

Gangadevipalli has won numerous awards and recognitions for its achievements. People's participation, strong leadership and its unique approach to administration and governance are the secrets behind the success story of Gangadevipalli.

Planning to ensure drinking water:

Gangadevipalli is a predominantly agriculture based economy with the families having only small or marginal land holdings. The village had a major drinking water problem. There was only one well in the entire village that too a kilometer away, and the women had to spend over three hours daily at the well, stand in the queue to source drinking water. Women had to wake up at 3 a.m., because only people who got to the well early managed to finish all their chores. A great amount of time was also lost. In order to make do with scarce resources of time and manpower, the children were made to drop out of school and work in the fields. Circumstances forced them to take the children to work. Some worked in the cotton fields and others went to the cotton mills. They did all sorts of work.

People from the village came together and decided to tackle the problem of drinking water next. Their efforts paid off when a voluntary association came forward and promised support to build a water tank if the villagers could raise 15% of the total cost of building the water tank. With a long-term view of institution building and also empowering people to transform their own lives, the grama sabha decided to form 15 groups of people towards raising the funds. 18 motivators were chosen and they all came together and worked hard. This ensured that they were able to raise Rs.65000 in just 2 months.

Within a few months the first water tank in the village was constructed and commissioned in Gangadevipalli. Water connections were installed within the houses of the people. Proper guidelines regarding the use of water were drafted and were strictly enforced. Only pipes of half inch diameter were to be used. The tap was to be 4 feet above the ground. No one could install the tap below 4 feet for any reason. The surroundings were to be kept clean and dry and free of weeds and vegetation. One could construct the tank of any size but water was not allowed to overflow from the tank. The tap had an ON-OFF regulator. One could plant any number of plants in their gardens but were not allowed to connect a hose pipe directly to the tap for watering the plants. Anybody found violating these norms would have their water connection sealed off. The water user then had to approach the water committee and agree not to violate the norms again. Upon payment of a Rs.100 fine, the water connection was restored again.

Any kind and any number of plants could be grown, but one had to carry water in a bucket or container to water them. These guidelines also ensured that the easy availability of water didn’t result in water being wasted. These norms are only to save and conserve water and all the people in the village can get enough water. It is only to avoid problems that these norms were enforced. Everyone in the village now gets ample water. There is no fear of water shortage in the village any more. Even today the water committee meets regularly on the second Saturday of every month. Should there be any emergency, a meeting of the entire water committee is called for and decisions taken and implemented. The water committee has taken its responsibility very seriously and they have very successfully implemented all their tasks. This is very evident in that there has been uninterrupted water supply in the village ever since. Not once has the borewell malfunctioned. Care has been taken to ensure availability of spare parts should a problem ever arise. Today there is ample water for everyone. Just like the streetlights, even the water supply program in Gangadevipalli became the pride of the people here.

Water Quality improvement:

Seeing the manner in which the people of Gangadevipalli were determined to transform their lives and act collect to develop the village, the government and private organizations came forward to support the people of Gangadevipalli. Prohibition of Liquor, disciplined water management, total implementation of family planning, construction and usage of ISLs in the entire village - all these measures greatly improved people’s health. Yet, the fluoride content in the water negated all these efforts aimed at improving people’s lives. When asked if they could effectively manage a filtration plant, Rajamouli, Sarpanch of Gangadevipalli readily accepted the proposal as it would benefit so many people. That’s how Tata projects came forward to give the plant free of cost.

The water filtration plant was established in the village in the year 2004. This plant provides clean and safe drinking water to the people at a service charge of one rupee for 20 litres of filtered drinking water. This plant purifies 1,000 litres of water per hour. The entire process is properly implemented and nothing is taken for granted by anyone in the village.

This facility is open from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. everyday. All villagers are given cards. Everyone gets the cans only after getting it entered in the cards. In the past people drank the impure water from the well. Today everyone has safe and healthy filtered water.

Sanitation delivery:

Like all villages Gangadevipalli too had problems relating to sanitation facilities. This not only caused many health-related problems but also affected the entire environment. In the year 2000 the grama sabha decided to implement the ‘Individual Sanitary Latrines’ project (ISL Project). There were no toilets or accessible open tracts of land. People would go and relieve themselves by the roadside. One had to cover one’s nose while walking on the road.

Generally in villages it is either a leader of a contractor who executes a project. In Gangadevipalli village, a committee was formed to undertake and execute the ISL project. The committee members got all the material like cement, bricks, sand and basins. They got carpenters and made the doors. This committee had to ensure construction of ISLs in all the houses in the village. When any project needs to be executed, a committee is formed. After the work is completed, the committee’s role is over. Forming such project based committees is also one of the special features of Gangadevipalli village.

In just 3 months, Individual Sanitary Latrines were constructed in every household. The sanitation project also showed that while it is possible for the gram panchayat to implement physical and structural facilities, changing the attitudes of people was not easy. Construction of ISLs in all houses was completed in 3 months. It then took another 3 years for all the people in the village to start using the ISLs. People refused to use ISLs. People were used to going outdoors to relieve themselves. The government released funds to construct ISLs, so people could live a healthy life. This purpose was lost because people used the ISLs for other things like storing wood and other things. Concentrated efforts were made to educate them through street plays, house visits, and banners. All these efforts did not yield desired results. Although women started using the ISLs, men continued to go outdoors.

The meeting of the Grama Sabha was held. As the people went outdoors despite knowing the health hazards, people at the Grama Sabha decided to impose a fine of Rs.500 on people who continued to go outdoors to relieve themselves. The sanitation committee implemented this decision of the Grama Sabha. This fine was uniformly applicable to anyone, if they were seen relieving themselves outdoors.

It took educative efforts of 3 years and numerous fines of Rs. 500 each for non-compliance to bring about the attitude change. Although rules do not provide for the imposition of such fines, it was the collective will of the Grama Sabha that imposed and collected the fines. Today everyone in the village uses the ISLs

Regarding state specific policy and convergence with NREGA:

Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat have incorporated convergence of NREGA with other village level programs like water and sanitation. Even Andhra Pradesh has NREGA amendments to incorporate some livelihood activities like afforestation and land development. But of course, we all need to explore a lot and develop convergence plans on how panchayat can utilize NREGA budget for improving livelihood, water and sanitation delivery at village level.

In some places, the individual panchayat representatives make efforts to integrate NREGA with water and sanitation. During my visit to a village in Warangal (Kudur mandal), I have found that the Sarpanch has ensured drinking water using RWS resources, but used NREGA and other resources to deliver water through piped connection at household levels.

P S Yadav, Haryana Institute of Rural Development & Department of Development and Panchayats, Karnal

I am sharing the success story of the Gram Panchayat Kaluana, Block Dabawali District Sirsa: A Model of Integrated Rural Development

Gram Panchayat Kaluana, Block Dabawali, District Sirsa has been selected for award of 1^st State Level award under State Incentive Scheme on Sanitation(SISS)-2008-09 . In order feel the performance of this Gram Panchayat in Sanitation myself, I visited it on 24-07-2009. The Gram Panchayat has not only performed very well on Sanitation front, but it has also done exceedingly well on other fronts also. There is complete community involvement in sanitation and other developmental activities. The important activities undertaken by the Gram Panchayats including sanitation are as under:

• Household Sanitation Coverage
• 100% Households have access to Sanitation facilities and GP area is free from open defecation.
• School Sanitation
• School has functional and clean Toilets for both boys and girls.
• Anganwadi Sanitation
• All the six Agnagwadi have also been reported to have provided with sanitation facilities.
• Waste Water Management 

1.      The Gram Panchayat has constructed 10-12 community soakage pits for absorption of grey water. Waste water is not allowed to enter into the village ponds. Drains are clean and functional. No water stagnation or spread is visible in the village streets or surroundings. More than 100 families have constructed individual Households soakage pits.

Solid Waste Management

2.      The Gram Panchayat has put in place a mechanism for collection of non bio-degradable waste ( particularly polythene) through the rag pickers, who take it for further sale in the market. A biogas plant has been installed in the Village Gaushala, which is producing gas to generate electricity to run a 7.5 horse power electric motor used for drawing water, running chaff cutter and floor grinding. The villagers have also started adopting this model at household level. 5-6 families have installed biogas plants.  About 40 families are have demanded biogas plants. Vermi-culture has been introduced in the Gaushala which is being adopted at household’s level slowly. Few household vermin-compost units have already been established. 

Rain Roof Water Harvesting

3.      Rain-roof water harvesting has been introduced in village school.

NREGA: Plantation & Land Development 

4.      4000 Neem, Shisham and other locally useful plants have been planted in and around the village abadi area with protective wire fencing to avoid the damage even by default. The plants are progressing well and of 4-5 ft height with good canopy giving a scenic and lush green look. Open spaces in all government /Community buildings like School, Mini Bank, Anganwadi Centre, Primary Health Centre, Stadium, Chaupals / Dharamshalas have been utilized for plantation. Almost all the village streets and main roads are full of plants. The GP has a plan to utilize every bit of vacant land in the village for plantation. Neem and Shisham Plantation has been done in 20 Acres of Panchayat waste land under NREGA and it is progressing very well with good canopy.

5.      A 50,000-plants nursery has been raised in the village water works with the help of forest department in order to make plants available to the people at cost so that they can raise plantation in the households and fields. Plants are not distributed free of cost. A nominal price of Rs. 5/- per plant has been fixed to make a sense of ownership towards the plants among the people. The price has been fixed in consultation of the village community. The money so earned goes to Kaluana Welfare Shiksha Samiti for maintenance of school van and other social activities.

About 60 Acres of Panchayat Land has been developed under NREGA. This land now fetches Rs. 15000/-18000/- per acre annually as against Rs. Less than 2000/- per acre two years hence. A Check dam for rain water harvesting in about 5-6 Acre length has been constructed under NREGA to arrest the flow of water from the village revenue boundary. It will help recharge of ground water as well as check soil erosion.

Education

6.      The Gram Panchayat has formed a society called Kaluana Welfare Siksha Samiti- a non political body for the promotion of education in and nearby villages. A School van has been purchased with the help of money raised through volunteer donations. The van has been purchased to fetch students from nearby villages who are interested in pursuing science subjects. This has been done to fulfill the norms required for starting science classes in 10+2 village school. The charges are normal. Maintenance is done by the Gram Panchayat. This is the unique example of people’s participation in socio-economic development of the village.

Self Help Groups

There are 10-12 Self Help groups in the village.

The Sarpanch Mr. Jagdev Saharan a young man in his 30s is pursuing the philosophy of village development rigorously and plans to do much more.

The table below gives the panchayat’s annual implementation plan (2009-2010), District : Yamuna Nagar

Part-A- Summary of Financial Proposal in respect of district Yamuna Nagar which is eligible for the release claim of next installment during the financial year 2009-10 under T.S.C.

Megha Phansalkar, Consultant, Mumbai

In Maharashtra under the Reforms approach since the year 2001 the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation has been community driven and the scheme are planned, implemented and managed by the Village Water and Sanitation Committee. Multiple case studies have been documented across the State as best practices on community based Watsan where role of PRI has been crucial. Apart from this the States flagship programme -  Clean village competition has churned many Gram Panchayats to take water and sanitation through community support. You may contact the department to seek information on many PRIs who have turned into model villages and training centers. One such case study of Mahalunge village (ftp://ftp.solutionexchange.net.in/public/wes/cr/res-25101001.doc, Word, 190 Kb) was documented in detail.

Nitya Jacob, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), New Delhi

The capacity of panchayats to manage water and sanitation facilities varies widely across the country and it’s hard to generalize. From what I have heard in consultations in different parts of India , the average panchayat has little or no ability to manage these facilities and the common reasons are a lack of understanding about their duties and government schemes and shortage of money. In many cases panchayats have no idea how to work out and levy user charges for drinking water schemes. The current incentive for sanitation @ Rs 2200 per toilet is inadequate and needs to be at least doubled. State Public Health Engineering Departments have set up water supply schemes in villages; panchayats are to take these over and run them but find them too expensive to manage. I have heard of only a few panchayats that have planned, executed and manage their own water supply schemes. However, there are many more examples of gram sabha-led initiatives that have enhanced water security in different parts of India , and I refer to the Arvari Sansad, Rajasthan, as one case in point. You can read about this at .

That said, there are encouraging examples of panchayats managing their own water schemes from different states. I have seen many other villages in Maharashtra and West Bengal where panchayats are effectively managing their water and sanitation facilities. There is Hiware Bazar where sarpanch Popat Pawar has institutionalized integrated water management and sanitation. Dhamner in the Satara District of Maharashtra, a village of 488 families, has transformed itself in five years into a model one. There are 71 community toilets for the poor and 325 households have their own toilets. The village has no dirty water flooding the streets – waste is collected in drains and processed in settling tanks at four locations. The processed water is used for horticulture. There are vermicompost sheds at different locations where solid organic waste is converted into manure. The panchayat also manages the village’s water supply. Asgaon in Ahmednagar district has a piped water supply where households are supplied for an hour daily and store this water in covered concrete tanks on their premises.

The Chaitanyapur gram panchayat, Sutahata block and Lakshya gram Panchayat, Mahishadal block, Purba Medinipur district, West Bengal , have made great strides in water supply and sanitation. It has moved from providing basic sanitation through construction of toilets to a system of improving the overall quality of life. This includes water supply, better cleanliness in villages, higher quality toilets and better standards of hygiene than before. Under the guidance of the Rama Krishna Mission Lok Shiksha Parishad (RKMLSP) the village has set up women’s groups to maintain its water sources. The women in these groups are trained to repair hand pumps. The households that draw water from a particular pump pay a monthly fee towards its maintenance. The women in the particular group also belong to these households.

In Kerala, the Adat Gram Panchayat, Thrissur district, has successfully propagated the use of household rooftop rainwater harvesting to supplement its own piped water supply. This has improved the quality of water in wells (that people drink) and also its availability.

I am not in a position to answer the third question save to say that about 75 per cent of the money spent under the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Guarantee Employment Scheme goes to water-related programmes. I have not seen a breakup of this, however.

J Geetha, Gramalaya, Tiruchirapally

Gramalaya is working in 6 rural blocks of Tiruchirapalli District in Tamil Nadu with Water.org support. PRIs are playing key role in water and sanitation works in the villages. In its project areas, Gramalaya has formed AWASH (Association for water, sanitation and hygiene) committees in 400 villages. The Panchayat president is an advisor of the AWASH committee and this comprises ward members, SHG members, youth groups, Anganwadi workers, school teachers, OHT operators and other volunteers. AWASH have monthly savings, subscription as well as internal lending.

Every month the panchayat president participates in the AWASH committee’s meetings to guide the committees. In case of any water or sanitation problems, the AWASH sends a request letter to the panchayat president to solve the issues. The President discusses the issue with the ward member concerned and solves the problems. PRIs provide household water connections to all households with the help of AWASH committees and remove street taps to avoid wastage of water and stagnant water. PRIs regularly monitor the cleaning of over-head tanks, chlorination, etc. If the pump operator’s salary is very low, some panchayat presidents supplement it from their own resources because they his cooperation. Some of the main roles for PRIs are given below.

• To prepare the action plan based on the base line survey
• To work with NGOs and District administration
• To link the families with banks for toilet construction
• To provide school and Anganwadi toilets with proper water facilities or renovate the existing abandoned toilets.
• To work for 100 % toilet coverage
• To organize village awareness camps on sanitation
• To help the community for materials procurement for IHHL construction
• To monitor OHT cleaning, chlorination etc.
• To solve the water and sanitation problem without delay
• To link with media for publishing their village needs, problems and success
• To facilitate the community to avoid open defecation
• To collect the water tax regularly and issue the receipts promptly

J P Maithani, Society for Community Involvement in Development, Chamoli

The Development Center For alternative Policies has a few reports on the issue you raised in this discussion. Anyway in Uttarakhand as per my knowledge the

1. PRIs have no direct influence in the management and distribution of the water resources in the hills, but Jalnigam and Jalsansthan are two departments responsible to make projects and implement them as government departments
2. We still do not have any State or Himalayan water policy, though it is needed urgently.
3. Our organization, Society for Community Involvement in Development (SFCID) and Alaknanda Ghaati Shilpi Federation are working on the revival of traditional water sources in the rural Himalayas that are called dharas, naulas, mangaras, challs, khaals, bawadis, kunds and gools (mud canals)
4. In the hills there are three parallel systems for the management and distribution of the drinking water. These are Jalnigam, Jalsansthan, Swajal/SWAP and the Department of Minor Irrigation. However, all work in isolation and do not have any strong linkages and coordination, though it is high time that they should work jointly keeping in view the Village Panchayats and PRIs.
5. If PRIs will have the rights over their natural resources they will be stronger and will become self-sustainable as well.

K.N. Vajpai, Climate Himalaya Initiative, Uttarakhand

In context to the development and devolution processes in India, year 2010 has been observed as ‘Year of Gram Sabha’, in realizing the mandate of self-governance, transparent and accountable functioning of our Gram Panchayats.  Over a decade of constitutionally mandated Panchayati Raj it had first time over one million women (in 2006) as elected representatives.

I will also take note from one of the very interesting studies carried out by PRIA New Delhi www.pria.org in early 2010, on various aspects of ‘water governance’ and ‘third generation of reform’ in selected states of India . 

When we talk about the existing capacity of PRIs in developing and managing WatSan facilities, there is no denying fact that, in the world’s largest democracy, the Panchayati Raj offers tremendous potential to make a positive difference. But, how this potential will be realized, depends a great deal on how well the Panchayats are empowered by the means of funds, functions and functionaries [3 Fs]. The measurement frame also revolves around the building the capacities of the elected representative in the Panchayat and lesser influence of bureaucratic system.

Though, it is evident that, the effective decentralization process requires a clear delegation of roles and responsibilities (Functions) at each level of government, backed by sufficient resources (Funds) and human resources (Functionaries) to carry out the assigned duties. The Local governments (PRIs) are ideally entrusted to provide services like health, education, water supply, among others, with the idea that, they are closer to the people and in a better position to appreciate their concerns, so their active involvement will certainly yield results on ‘sustainability’ aspect.

One of the letter written by Government of India in 2009 to all states reads “..the Union Government has a critical role to play in the devolution of 3Fs upon the PRIs, because of its basic responsibilities to ensure governance in accordance with the constitutional provisions and also because of the increasingly large fiscal transfers it makes to the States in the functional domain of the PRIs, mainly through Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSSs) and Additional Central Assistance schemes (ACAs)….”

It further says “…doubts are often expressed about the capacity and accountability of PRIs. This is a vicious circle since, unless 3 Fs are devolved, the PRIs would not be able to prove their comparative advantage. Empowering Panchayats, with clear roles and authority assigned to different levels through activity mapping, is a strong incentive to build capacity and also to get other pre-requisites for effective performance into place. This is amply proved by the implementation of NREGA through the Panchayats, which after some initial difficulties has now stabilized…”

The ‘Article 40’ of the Constitution of India explains that “State shall take steps to organize village Panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government”.

Therefore, the devolution of functions, functionaries and funds (3Fs) are the necessary requisite for the proper functioning of the institutions of local self governance, which has not happened in most of the states of India yet. In the absence of clear devolution of 3Fs, either different institutions of local self governance are playing common role in a particular sector or not playing any role, at all. So, the provision of water and sanitation are not different in this way.

In some of the states, who have devolved the functions at the lowest level are facing the problem of human and financial resources. There are some key issues those can provide more opportunities for the devolution and better functioning of PRIs in water and sanitation facilities:

• Institutions like State Finance Commission (SFC) and District Planning Committees (DPCs) have great potential to catalyze the process of devolution.
• Functions related to supply of safe drinking water must be devolved at the block level and below it with in a district. Given the scenario, where overall policy formulation for drinking water supply could be done at state level, needs complete devolution in terms of feasibility, planning, implementation and operation and maintenance and institutional recruitments at Panchayat level.
• Higher accountability to be fixed on administrative and technical staff /officials at each level / tire, of the local government, i.e. at Panchayat, Block and District.
• It is also suggested that the ‘water committees/VWSC should be given options to outsource the development of water supply scheme to the agency of its own choice after consultation with the community preferably at Gram Sabha. This would enable the community to obtain a higher quality of service and minimize capital and maintenance cost, through competitive selection of service providers among existing public and private agencies and other organizations.
• The devolution of funds is among one of the critical issues to be strengthened at the institutions of LSGs.  So, better financial strength of the institutions will enable them to outsource the technologies and human resources in order to provide better services.

Johnson Rhenius, WaterAid India , Lucknow

Existing capacity of PRIs to plan, monitor and maintain community water and sanitation facilities:

The main problem is that the PRIs are not involved in planning, implementation and after a scheme is over the hardware is just handed over to PRI for Operation and maintenance. Thus after sometime the scheme fails because first there is no ownership, second PRIs fail to collect user charges from users and lastly after sometime with mounting O & M costs the scheme fails. The PRIs does have the capacity to plan, monitor and maintain water sanitation facilities unless and until they are involved right from planning to execution with people's participation. 

Maharashtra has more examples where PRIs are successfully running water sanitation facilities because they were involved from planning. In the pilot sector reform project which was implemented in 3 districts at first the panchayats were involved from BLS, Water need assessment, DPR, Implementation, Purchase, Quality control and O & M. They also ensured sanitation and WRM are part of the water schemes planned. However technically difficult were the schemes, the schemes are well managed now. Also is SWAJAL. In Mahoba in Kumhora village the SWAJAL supported mini water supply scheme is still functional and the VWSC is now in second generation hands. This was also successful because the PRIs were involved right from planning, designing, purchase, implementation, quality control and O & M. The problem is that government departments and technical experts perceive that villagers and non technical persons cannot understand critical water sanitation technologies but what they forget is that the common village people have rich practical ideas for water sanitation engineering as demonstrated in Swajal and Sector reform project in Maharashtra . I have also seen successful models in Kerala. 

In UP, there is a plan to repair all mini water supply scheme through NREGS but is still in infancy and hope through that all non functional schemes can be brought to usage. But for sanitation HHL and school sanitary blocks are covered under NREGS and implementation of the same have started.

PRIs can be involved all through the process like micro planning for WASH, Water sanitation need assessment, Assessment on capacity of people to pay for O  & M (Many schemes fails to reach socially excluded as they are unable to pay for capital and O & M), DPR and also involved in Selection of contractors, vendors and also be part of purchases. There should be adequate checks and balances to ensure there is accountability and transparency as now corruption has also being decentralised and is a concern.

You can visit Kumhora in Mahoa, UP to see how the PRIs are successful in running the water sanitation schemes.

J.V.R. Murty, WSP-SA, New Delhi

Here are my thoughts on the three questions:

1. What is the existing capacity of PRIs to plan, monitor and maintain community water and sanitation facilities?

This varies from state to state and is not easy to define on a national scale. The capacity is related to the extent of devolution happening across states. The states with higher devolution in the water and sanitation sector (where money goes to GO accounts for water and san projects) demonstrate higher capacities. While many states have given a prominent role to GPs in sanitation, very few have given prominent role in water management. Overall, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat are good examples for combined water and sanitation capacities in PRIs. Please let us know if you know of other states with higher PRI capacities.

2. Are there any examples that prove that higher involvement of PRIs in planning, monitoring and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities leads to better results?

Again this needs to be sub-divided into water and sanitation sub-sects. In Sanitation, there ate numerous examples of GP management leading to good results. The NGP has given a big fillip to this process. We, from WSP, compiled a publication on good practices in sanitation sector last month and this can be accessed at : http://ddws.gov.in/publications.htm. This publication is called: Compendium of Best Practices in Rural Sanitation in India .

There are relatively fewer cases in the drinking water sector. We are again putting together a compendium on this aspect and any good case studies are welcome. Most good cases come from the states that I mentioned above due to higher degree of devolution in the water sector.

3. Are the design, construction and maintenance of community water and sanitation facilities supported by MGNREGS and other livelihood promotion schemes of the central and state governments?

The Department for Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India allocates huge sums of money to states under their flagship programs namely: Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) and National Rural Drinking Water Program (NRDWP). Most of the money comes from these two sources. Very little money comes from MGNREGS and other livelihood programs, though there is a lot of talk about integration of different sources of grants for water conservation etc.

Gyanendra Mishra, Unified Development Association for the Amelioration of Neglected (UDAAN) Society, Aligarh

In UP community water and sanitation facilities are planned, monitored and implemented by PRIs (including Gram Sabha) in the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC). Starting from selection of beneficiaries, the Gram Sabhas hold open meetings where the BPL families decide the terms of sanitation facilities. The Department of Panchayati Raj (implementing agency here for TSC) provide funds to the PRI for the construction of individual toilets, angan wadi toilets and school toilets. Moreover, funds are provided for soak pits, etc. The responsibility to construct the infrastructure lies with the  PRIs (for individual toilets it lies with the beneficiaries).

Raktim Mukhopadhyay, Development Consultant, Kolkata

I request Megha to provide the details of the Village Water and Sanitation Committee. What was the role of Women Self Help Groups and how were they encouraged?

Joshua Godfrey, Water.org, Tiruchirapally

Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) as the units of local self government are active partners in any development programme. Better delivery of services through better access and inclusion of the poor, marginalized and underprivileged is the trademark of the programmes by PRIs. Pragmatically, not in all given circumstances it happens as underlined in the programme implementation protocol. Bridging this motivation gap is the key task of civil society organizations engaged tackling development issues.

Water.org works with NGOs and micro-finance institutions (MFIs) to deliver watsan services to the needy. Our NGO partners GRAMALAYA and SCOPE (Tiruchirappalli), ODP ( Mysore ), MSSS ( Bangalore ) and SIDUR ( Hyderabad ) have strategized and worked with PRIs in the entire project cycle of watsan activities. Here we would like to cite few examples of our partners working with PRIs.

GRAMALAYA ensures participation of PRIs during the initial period of the programme, to initiate watsan development programme in a village through community-based organizations named AWASH (Association for Water Sanitation and Hygiene). The members of the association are representatives from Youth groups, Women Self-Help Groups and local leaders. The elected representative Councilor/Panchayat President, Bank Mangers, School Teachers constitute the advisory board of the AWASH. So, the PRI plays a facilitator role; they attend the AWASH meetings periodically coerce them in rendering support in programme planning, implementation and follow up. For more details about AWASH, please log on to http://www.gramalaya.in /aboutAWASH.php. SCOPE works with similar concepts forming WatSan committee.

MYTHRI SARVA SEVA SAMITHI, to operationalize WatSan programmes, forms Sanitation Environment Groups (SEG) in the villages where they are working. An SEG is constituted with women of Stree Sakthi Groups (Microfinance programme, where SHGs are formed by the Karnataka Government). Mythri holds meetings with PRIs for sanctioning toilets and water points and construction material. The SEGs assist PRIs in collection of water tax and in turn PRI looks after the maintenance of the hardware structures created.

ODP forms a Central Committee at village level and the Mahilodaya Federation plays a pivotal role in liaising with PRI. The spiral effect of ODP working with PRI in our project location has yielded a project sanctioned from ZPED (Zilla Panchayat Engineering Division) to implement the programme in the adjacent Chamraj Nagar District.

SIDUR’s activities are concentrated in slums where the project land belongs to the central government and watsan schemes are supported by the state government. They largely work with cantonment board, sensitizing MPs and MLAs through face to face lobbying in getting their sanctions or funds to implement watsan activities in the slums. 

Many thanks to all who contributed to this query!

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