Several regions across India face acute shortage of safe drinking water. We speak to Amar Prakash, state programme director for WaterAid in Madhya Pradesh, about their interventions, challenges and success stories.
Amar Prakash: Our primary work is to ensure access to safe and reliable drinking water in collaboration with various government departments. The central government’s Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) aims to provide safe drinking water at the household level by providing tap water connection in rural areas.
We see this as an opportunity to complement the government’s efforts that are already in place. Under JJM, the department focuses on providing infrastructure like piped water supply. However, we believe that other aspects such as source sustainability need attention too. In the past few years, we’ve supported districts in planning for sustainability and seen significant improvements in reliable water supply.
Another crucial aspect is operational maintenance. Even with good infrastructure, sustainability is at risk without proper maintenance. We’ve worked on three aspects – community-led mechanisms to increase community tariffs, ensuring adequate skills at the local level, and strengthening institutions like panchayats and village water sanitation committees.
Water quality is also vital. We need to communicate what safe water means and establish regular community water quality testing. Alongside infrastructure efforts, we complement departmental work by focusing on these critical components.
Groundwater issues are prevalent, especially in Madhya Pradesh, where communities face challenges, particularly during summer. We must view water comprehensively, understanding that overexploitation, especially in agriculture, affects groundwater availability for drinking purposes. While promoting surface water-based schemes under the JJM, it’s crucial to involve communities in better groundwater management for a sustainable future.
Amar Prakash: Currently WaterAid is working directly in seven districts of Malwa and Bundelkhand regions of Madhya Pradesh. We have been working with the Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and OBC communities in this region. So, for example, our work in Dindori district is primarily with the Baiga tribe.
However, our presence is statewide. We provide technical support for Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) as well as JJM to various district administrations across the state.
For instance, recently, as part of our technical support for SBM, we have been assisting districts in their liquid waste management and faecal sludge management endeavours. This is not limited to a particular geography, but is done based on the district administration’s request. Once we receive a request, our team visits the location, assists in preparing detailed project reports and provides capacity building support too.
Amar Prakash: There are numerous examples that illustrate the positive outcomes of investing in community processes. Our emphasis is on community-led planning because it greatly increases the chances of success.
Community-led planning not only involves engaging the community in decision-making but also developing their leadership skills. In many villages, we’ve empowered women leaders who play a crucial role in implementing JJM. Additionally, there are pump operators who provide daily support and assist panchayats and other institutions.
We also recognise the importance of involving youth in the process as they are proactive and understand the issues at hand. Moreover, institutions such as village water sanitation committees and panchayats also need to be actively involved as per guidelines.
We have several powerful stories of our community leaders from the Baiga tribe, a particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTG), in Dindori who have been awarded for their tremendous leadership too. These experiences reaffirm our belief in investing in community processes. We are convinced that such investments ensure the long-term sustainability of any water related programme.
Amar Prakash: We work for transformation at two levels – community and institutions. At the community level, we try to address issues of water access, sanitation, hygiene and more importantly behaviours.
At the institutional level we also intervene in schools and anganwadis. It is well established that lack of water access severely impacts educational, health and nutritional outcomes. This is why we have been working with various institutions to ensure better WASH (safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene) services.
We also educate the community as well as children and other stakeholders like teachers and school principals to emphasise on these basic components along with improving the quality of education. At various health centres we have been promoting different hygiene behaviours that are critical to preventing infections.
In some places, where there is a need, we also invest in infrastructure. In some remote areas of Dindori district, we have provided financial assistance to these institutions. Fundamentally our focus has been on infrastructure improvement and behavioural change.
The lead image shows a rural woman filling a vessel with water. (Photo courtesy WaterAid)
