2. • THERE IS A DIRECT LINK BETWEEN WATER AND HEALTH CARE.
INDIVIDUAL HEALTH AND HYGINE DEPENDENT ON ADEQUATE
AVAILABILITY OF DRINKING WATER AND PROPER SANITATION.
• SANITATION IS ONE OF THE BASIC DETERMINANTS OF QUALITY OF LIFE
AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX.
• EARLIER CONCEPT OF SANITATION WAS ONLY LIMITED TO DISPOSAL OF
HUMAN EXCRETA.
• BUT IT ALSO INCLUDES LIQUID AND SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL, FOOD
HYGIENE AND PERSONAL, DOMESTIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL HYGIENE.
2
3. OUTCOMES OF POOR SANITATION
•Poor sanitation is linked to transmission of diarrhoeal diseases such as
cholera and dysentery, as well as typhoid, intestinal worm infections and
polio. Poor exacerbates stunting and contributes to the spread of
antimicrobial resistance.
•Poor sanitation reduces human well-being, social and economic
development due to impacts such as anxiety, risk of sexual assault, and lost
opportunities for education and work.
3
4. RURAL SANITATION PROGRAMME
• THE CENTRAL RURAL SANITATION PROGRAM- THE CENTRAL RURAL
SANITATION PROGRAM WAS LAUNCHED IN 1986. THE BASIC OBJECTIVE
OF THIS PROGRAM WAS TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF RURAL
PEOPLE AND TO PROVIDE PRIVACY AND DIGNITY TO WOMEN. Toilet
construction in rural India- THE PROGRAM WAS RECONSTRUCTED
AGAIN IN APRIL, 1999 WHICH FOCUSES ON DEMAND DRIVEN
APPROACH IN A PHASED MANNER WITH A VIEW TO COVER THE WIDER
RANGE OF RURAL POPULATION BY THE END OF 9TH FIVE YEAR PLAN.
THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION IS RESPONSIBLE
FOR THE SANITATION IN RURAL AREAS.
• TOTAL SANITATION SCHEME- THE TOTAL SANITATION CAMPAIGN (TSC)
IS A PROGRAM TO ENSURE SANITATION FACILITIES IN RURAL AREAS TO
ERADICATE OPEN DEFECATION. IT WAS LAUNCHED IN THE YEAR 1999.
4
5. STEPS TO IMPROVE RURAL SANITATION IN INDIA
• Further increasing political will and administrative commitment by
identifying and creating local sanitation champions at the district level – for
example, through exposure visits and evidence-based advocacy – and
addressing key institutional bottlenecks such by supporting the state to
formulate a state-specific sanitation policy.
• Providing technical support to selected districts to demonstrate that
sanitation can be delivered at the scale of a district and in a sustainable
manner, and to develop district-wide approaches that are tailored to a
particular state.
• Supporting the strengthening of state governments’ institutional capacity
to roll out the successful models to other districts, eventually covering the
entire state.
5
6. BENIFITS OF IMPROVING SANITATION
Benefits of improved sanitation extend well beyond reducing the risk of diarrhoea.
These include:
•reducing the spread of intestinal worms, schistosomiasis and trachoma, which are
neglected tropical diseases that cause suffering for millions;
•reducing the severity and impact of malnutrition;
•promoting dignity and boosting safety, particularly among women and girls;
•promoting school attendance: girls’ school attendance is particularly boosted by the
provision of separate sanitary facilities;
•reducing the spread of antimicrobial resistance;
•potential recovery of water, renewable energy and nutrients from faecal waste; and
•potential to mitigate water scarcity through safe use of wastewater for irrigation
especially in areas most affected by climate change.
6
