Access of the poor to water supply and sanitation in India : salient concepts, issues and cases

This paper focuses on the factors that restrict access of the poorest individuals to water supply and sanitation in rural and urban India. Sections 2 and 3 deal with domestic water supply and sanitation. In each section, an historical overview of the phenomenon in rural and urban India is followed by a critique of available figures for coverage. Section 4 addresses the specific institutional problems faced in the public sector delivery of these two utilities while section 5 deals with the parallel yet thus far limited presence of the private sector. The penultimate section deals with the re-emergent paradigm of community self-reliance in terms of water supply and sanitation. It argues that three key concepts central to participatory development are at risk of being misunderstood and, therefore, misapplied by those in. The conclusion stresses that concepts guiding policy can have profound implications for how any water supply or sanitation project is borne out in reality. Reference is made to some promising technical and institutional innovations in different parts of the country. Examples are used to illuminate some of the issues and concepts discussed.