Environmental Sanitation, Health and Panchayati Raj (Revised and Enlarged Edition)

This Publication is a substantially revised edition of the 1996 publication: Environmental Sanitation Health and Panchayati Raj. The fact that a mere 5.58 percent out of a rural population of 623 million has been covered by both safe drinking water and sanitation after four and half decades of development planning and rural development programmes, is a matter of grave concern. Environmental Sanitation Health and Panchayati Raj is the result of a study which critically looked into the implementation and monitoring of experimental models of sanitation and health programmes in different parts of the country. They include programmes of central and state governments, international organisations such as UNICEF, the World Bank and the World Health Organisation, NGOs like Sulabh International Social Service Organisation (SISSO), Environmental Sanitation Institute, Gujarat and the Bio-Village Model of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, Pondicherry. The study has evolved a sanitation and health model synthesizing the salient aspects of these programmes for adoption in panchayati raj.
The historic 73rd Constitution Amendment opens new vistas for improving the quality of life of the people in rural India. This study is a major contribution outlining the full potential of panchayati raj to usher in a sea-change in the rural areas to upgrade the present sanitation and health care systems. Mulk Raj Anand says in his message to this publications: ?I hope the book comes to the notice of governmental agencies, international organisations and local NGOs as it give guidelines to achieve appointed goals. If the reverse traffic of migration from urban to rural is to set in, and India wishes to have a healthy nation, such research studies will show the way to pioneer revolutionary development,?
Revised edition further evaluated the implementation strategy and performance of different models presented in this study. We have as far as possible incorporated data and information regarding the models as made available to us from 1996 onwards till today.