Water

Providing environmentally safe sanitation to millions of people is a significant challenge. The task is doubly difficult in a country where the introduction of new technologies can challenge people’s traditions and beliefs.

This report examines the current state of sanitation services in India and offers six recommendations that can help key stakeholders work toward universal sanitation coverage in India: scaling up pro-poor sanitation programs, customizing investments, exploring cost effective options, applying proper planning and sequencing, adopting community-based solutions, and forging innovative partnerships. The recommendations were based largely on an ADB study on household sanitation and drainage in India.

ADB’s empirical study entitled “Sanitation in India: Progress, Differentials, Correlates, and Challenges” (2009) attempts to discern key policy conclusions that could assist India in meeting its set goal of “Sanitation for All” by 2012. It looks at (i) safe disposal of human excreta, as measured by household ownership of a sanitary latrine; and (ii) household access to drainage facilities. It investigates the trends, socio-economic differentials, and correlates of household sanitary latrines from 1992 to 2006, and provides rough cost estimates for universal coverage.

• ADB's Sanitation Agenda
• Water for All publication series
• Book: Asian Sanitation Data Book 2008: Achieving Sanitation for All