paper

Running head: SANITATION PROBLEM IN INDIA 1

SANITATION PROBLEM IN INDIA 2

Abstract 

It is every human being’s right to have access to water and sanitation. Inaccessibility to toilets causes people to defecate everywhere, which later results in environmental contamination; hence diarrheal diseases a leading cause of child death globally. In India, access to toilets, safe drinking water, and proper draining system, is a significant concern. In rural India, 2.5% of diseases are due to open defecation, 40% of the population have no access to toilets, and poor sanitation is a significant threat to the Indian women. Urinary tract infections, cholera, soil-transmitted infections, and trachoma are caused by poor hygiene. Poverty and illiteracy are the reasons for poor sanitation, lack of access to toilets, and safe drinking water. Changes in the environment, such as floods, are likely to interfere with the current water and sanitation infrastructures by destroying septic tanks and sewage systems, resulting in pollution and increased health risks. The government should encourage proper sanitation, create awareness on the importance of proper hygiene, and provide health education to its citizens to reduce this crisis. Also, the sewages should be treated and properly managed, and poverty reduced. 

Keywords: Sanitation, diarrheal diseases, poor drainage  

Introduction

Access to water and sanitation is a right for all human beings and is one of the goals that were adopted and ratified in 2015 by countries under the United Nations. Inaccessible toilets can lead to defecation which in turn leads to contamination in the environment which causes untreated pathogens hence diarrheal diseases a leading cause of death in many children. According to Bhagat (2014) access to toilets, safe water for drinking, and appropriate drainage systems is a problem for the people in rural India. Poor and lack of drainage facilities in rural India affect people in low areas during the monsoon season. This paper will look at the basic sanitation in rural areas of India.

Literature Review

The proportion of homesteads with toilet structures in their homesteads was 31% according to a study carried in rural areas. Open defecation in rural India accounts for 2.5% of diseases with 40% of the population having no access to any kind of toilets (Jain et al., 2019). Poor sanitation is a great threat to women and girls as it exposes them to unsafe and violent situations for instance the Indian women have said that they withhold food and drinking water to limit the number of times they have to excrete either at night or day. Some of the diseases related to open defecation and open toilets include urinary area infections, soil-transmitted infections, cholera, and trachoma.

Stereotypes and beliefs exist that prevent Indians from using toilets and most of them are social-cultural taboos. Some individuals consider the presence of a latrine in the house impure according to religion. This is because they think that the house cannot have a deity or deities and the same house cannot have human defecation. The presence of filth in the house destroys the divinity of the house hence putting the household at the risk of getting punishment instead of rewards and bliss from the gods. Pit latrines at homes are believed to make the house impure for cooking and eating which raises concern for lack of trash bags and bins within the homestead as the waste is swept and left in the open to keep evil away (Sriroop & Mimi, 2018). Some of the individuals that go to work also reason that having a latrine is an inconvenience as it's better to excrete outside on your way to work than entering a toilet. Others also reason that having to urinate and defecate outside improves and is an opportunity for social networking, catch up, and gossip.

The government of India in 1999, through the ministry of Rural development, dropped the TSC program which was a community-driven project drawing strength from education and communication used to sensitize the community the importance of toilets. The program saw the increase of toilet structures by 1% from 2001 to 2011 showing that the rate of improvement is very low. In addition the TSC project did not consider geographical, socio-economical, and water conditions which vary in the entire state (Bhagat, 2014,). The program was abolished but none has been successful in ensuring sanitization is achieved in the country.

Background of the Study

Open defecation and inadequate water supply are widespread problems in India and account for a major crisis. Improving population in India is dealing with poverty, illiteracy and have lack of sanitation (Nath, 2003). 620 million individuals in India lack toilets (Sengupta et al., 2019) and 97 million people have inaccessibility to adequate sources of water (Showkat, 2016). Whereas, 600,000 poverty-stricken villages have led to financial problems for the construction of latrines (Sengupta et al., 2019). In India, only 10 states are announced as open defecation free out of 29 in 2019 (Yoshino et al., 2019). Inadequate management of human waste and water supply results in various health problems and diseases. In India 6 lakh people die due to diarrhea every year (Showkat, 2016). Every child below the age of 5 experiences diarrhea twice or thrice a year that further leads to malnutrition in children due to sanitation problems. Even, 60 % to 80% of diseases are associated with poor sanitation, hygiene and water contamination (Nath, 2003).

Sanitation problem and challenges in India

The Asia Water Watch 2015 report states that India will achieve its MDG Sanitation Target in both Urban and Rural area. The percentage of population served by proper sanitation in urban areas increased to 80% and in rural area 48% since 1990 to 2015. Despite recent development, access to better sanitation remains significantly low in India relative to many other countries with the same per capita income and 55% of the overall population in rural area or close to 600 million people have no access to toilet (Shekhar and Hun Kim 2009). Another issue is the overflow of raw sewage and increased load due to poor maintenance even in major cities. Treatment capacity for waste water is still woefully insufficient, as India neither have resources nor enough water to layout sewage treatment plan. It has been estimated that only 30% of the India’s waste water was treated in 2003 and the remaining millions of litres wasted into streams or rivers. Three-fourth of India’s surface water resources are polluted according to the country’s Tenth Five-Year Plan, and 80 percent of pollution is due to sewage alone (Nair and Sheela 2008).

The key learning as a significant threat to the health of a community where it is practised. The availability of sufficient sanitation coverage in rural India was a major challenge due to its diverse socio-economic conditions. The 2011 Census report of India points out that only 30.70% of rural India has access to sanitation facilities and 67.3% still practiced OD. The Central Rural Sanitation Program (CRSP), the first national sanitation system initiated by the Ministry of Rural Development in 1986 in order to improve sanitation conditions in the region. The main focus of CRSP was the development of household toilets and to encouraged the use of pour-flush toilets by offering hardware incentives to stimulate demand. Nonetheless, problems such as behaviour change to stop open defecation and to improve the usage of toilets have not been prioritised.

Material Methods Environment Poor Sanitation Poor maintenance Wrong cleaning choices Inadequate disposal material Pollution Personnel Equipment Layout Human Resources Heavy Spillage Poor drainage Poor Hygiene Lack of knowledge

The factors which are affecting sanitation can be assessed by Fishbone Diagram which is also known as Ishikawa Diagram that helps individual to track down the issues and reasons related for defects, variations, imperfection and failure. Some of the issues and challenges are.

Environment and location variability Issues:

A large portion of people who lack sanitation is too often present in areas with difficult topography and climate, which may contribute to logistical challenges for sanitation solutions. For example, Sanitation approaches, such as twin leach pit toilets, should not be constructed near flood prone areas where leaching might not be feasible. There is a need to recognise that one-size-fits-all solutions and strategies will not work, and site-specific solutions are needed to ensure safe sanitation for all. In India, the variability of behaviour in relation to sanitation has been a prevalent issue. Various surveys have shown that, in many rural areas of India, people prefer defecating in the open because they consider it to be safer, healthier and even 'religiously appropriate' than using toilets within the home. The rise in Growing urban sprawls and peri-urban areas pose specific issues of concern, one of the major issues being groundwater contamination from domestic sewage that is not safely disposed (Biswas & Jamwal 2017). Several other studies have highlighted the clear correlation between sanitation and groundwater quality in urban areas and hence the need for a holistic approach to safe sanitation management (Bhallamudi et al, Prasad, & Ray 2019).

The climate change is likely to deteriorate the current water and sanitation infrastructure. Extreme events like floods can destroy septic tanks and sewerage systems, leading to groundwater pollution and increased public health risks (Bharat, 2014). Studies have shown that high incidence of groundwater pollution causes public health problems that rely on it as the primary source of water for domestic use and consumption.

Poor maintenance methods and cleaning choices:

It has been reported that a significant number of individuals who have access to the bathroom can experience major failing in access in very brief short amounts of time. In some rural areas the beneficiaries lack support and sufficient financing which can contribute to inadequate maintenance, breakdowns and defective toilets. Many Self-help Groups (SHGs) in the country have sponsored micro-financing schemes in providing handholding support in both financial and technical aspects. Nevertheless, the rural communities have less understanding of these issues. Interventions without proper control of solid and liquid waste endanger the Community's well-being. The issue of a rising population also challenges the viability of the initiatives, as the remedies may not be adequate to ensure good health. India is rapidly urbanising with half of the population expected for urbanisation by 2030. This puts immense stress on both rural urban water supply and sanitation services, with a rapid rise in population of peri-urban slums thereby creating challenges (Rumi 2008). Several reports point out that more than 61% household toilets have been installed since 2014 and more needed to fulfil the need of ever-increasing urban population creates the risk of slippage and poor maintenance, challenging the urban regions declared by the ODF. A number of studies have identified deficiencies in the coverage, insufficient maintenance and usage of latrines in urban slums (Patel & Mohanty 2019).

Inadequate Human Resources, poor drainage and equipment :

In the past, various training and skill development projects have been initiated under different sanitation schemes in India, such as those introduced by the key Resource Centres. Training and capacity building projects should include design and development in modern sanitation facilities, training of local people on rehabilitation and proactive maintenance of sanitation structures and hygiene promotion. Timing and coordination of planning are highly critical for improved performance and capacity building outcomes. Inadequate capability may have a major negative effect on rural sanitation (Ministry of Jal Shakti, 2019). There is also a need to provide workers with the right tools (including software) and strategies of collective mobilisation, sanitation and promotion of hygiene. NGOs, CSOs and educational agencies will play a significant role in the preparation and employment of additional human capital required for effective sanitation. Effective management of Faecal waste has been a major concern. An assessment study conducted by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) suggests that around 5,200 trucks are needed daily to carry around 1,2 lakh tonnes of excreta generated by 720 million people using 144 million household toilets. This study also states that about 60 percent of human waste is dumped into open water and land untreated (Sarkar, 2018).

Lack of knowledge and poor Personnel hygiene:

Sewage infrastructure at all ULBs needs to be strengthened by using new technologies and decentralised treatment / infrastructure plants at different locations. One of the main reasons for the slippage from ODF was faulty toilets; there is a need to determine non-usability and corrective action should be taken accordingly. For starters, they need to examine and rectify the slippage found in functional toilets in schools and communities. Swachh Bharat Kosh funds is earmarked to fix broken toilets. Priorities for successful use of these funds are clearly required by conducting annual surveys to identify faulty toilets in schools and ensuring their repair and developing a business model for technical support (not necessarily free / subsidised) to maintain and repair toilets (SCRD, Report 51, 2017-18). Capacity building for the safe management of faecal waste produced from containment systems at the site is required. In order to ensure the sustainability of services, prospects for FSM services should be identified, with due consideration of the economy of scale (Verhagen & Scott 2019).

Recommendations

The water, sanitation, health and hygiene sectors and policies should be harmonised and controlled in a holistic manner. Sanitation interventions and initiatives requires involvement and efforts of Government and Civil Social organization to ensure healthy sanitation for everyone.

Behavioral improvement is an important factor in achieving safe sanitation. The initiatives at the national, state and city level need to be complemented and synergized with awareness-raising and behaviour-changing strategies with key stakeholders (such as leaders, citizens, colleges, media, etc.) to achieve expected results.

Dysfunctional toilets lead to slippage from the status of open defecation free (ODF), the reasons for which should be determined, and appropriate action should be taken to measure quality of life (QoL) by Sanitation and Hygiene initiatives likes poverty reduction, strengthened health and education system.

Use biodegradable point-of-use sanitation bags which are buried or properly disposed of. In general these bags use reusable containers. There are benefits like little infrastructure required, lean and quick to transport and could be used in situations where space is seriously limited. However, the contraints involved are with some of the bags the cost is prohibitive, site disposal and collection services are required. Needs intensive hygiene campaign to inform the community about handling and the bags being disposed of.

Efforts are required over the entire sanitation chain to improve human resources required for sanitation. Sewage disposal needs to be strengthened by using new technologies and decentralised treatment / management facilities at multiple locations within urban local authorities (ULBs).

It is imperative to ensure buy-in from the community in order to manage the WASH facilities created under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). All infrastructures must be focused on creative concepts for the maintenance and operations & management (O&M). In order to achieve better WASH outcomes, the alliance built among the various stakeholders including State, District and City Governments, academia, the private sector, and CSOs under SBM should be strengthened.

Conclusion

The SBM has seen unparalleled engagement by people, as well as receiving tremendous political support. The increase in the coverage of sanitation has significantly helped move forward in achieving SDG, especially in achieving the target of access to sanitation facilities. The policies and programmes in the sanitation sector in India should build-up on the efforts made so far. In order to ensure good health, water, sanitation, and hygiene sectors should be harmonized accordingly. Behavioural change is a major component for achieving safe sanitation and media has the power to bring people together towards common cause and objectives.

Lack of water supply in toilets as well as dysfunctional toilets are the two key reasons for slippage from ODF. In order to ensure easy accessibility and affordability, workable approaches adapted to rural and urban conditions must be built at State level, and the effort must be oriented towards making the maintenance service a self-sustaining occupation over time. Stable and long-term funding and planning are crucial to retaining ODF status. Short-term and one-time planning without a future investment roadmap would result in low quality toilets or sewerage infrastructure which eventually increases O&M expenditure, resulting in unsustainability of the generated infrastructure and unsustainability of positive behaviour. Sewage disposal needs to be strengthened by using new technologies and decentralised treatment / control facilities at multiple locations across all ULBs. Safe sanitation means the entire sanitation chain has to operate safely and sustainably. Not all parts of the chain can be left to households or the private sector alone. Several Indian states have made significant efforts toward achieve the SDG sanitation objective.

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