THE BOMBAY METROPOLITAN REGION: A SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE PROJECT AREA P. K. MUTTAGI With a view to determining the ability and willingness of different categories of consu­ mers to pay for water and sanitary facilities, a socio-economic survey was conducted in the project area in the Bombay Metropolitan Region. This fast developing area is just outside the Greater Bombay Municipal limits. The article contains a brief discussion on population growth, housing conditions, slums, community facilities, income and expenditure of the households, industrial and commercial growth and so on. Dr. P. K. Muttagi is the Head of the Unit for Urban Studies of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Deonar, Bombay-400 088.

The Background: The Water Resources Institute of Social Sciences. The investiga­ Management Board of the Bombay Metro­ tion began on the same, in August 1978 politan Region Development Authority has and was completed finally in June 1979. prepared a project for improving the infras- tructure including the schemes for the pro­ The Objectives vision of water supply and sewerage services for a portion of the Bombay Metropolitan As the primary objective of the study was Region adjoining the Greater Bombay the determination of the ability and the Municipal limits. This project area compri­ willingness of the consumers to pay, two ses of the municipal towns of Ambernath, independent but interrelated facts were Bhiwandi, Dombivli, Kalyan, Thane and covered namely, an assessment of the eco­ Ulhasnagar and 104 villages, all of which nomic justification of the project, with parti­ are at varying stages of urbanisation. Six cular reference to the benefits, derived by of the villages, namely: Badlapur, Bhayan- the poor; deciding the tariff structure which der, Katemanivli, Kulgaon, Majiwade and would be responsive to the social needs of Mohone are classified as non-municipal the people particularly, the poor, not over­ towns or semi-urban towns. The project looking the economic viability of the envisages the execution of an integrated projects. scheme for water supply and sewerage and includes the improvement and augmentation The Tasks of the existing schemes as well as the under­ taking of new ones. The WRMB approach­ The following tasks were specified: ed the World Bank for an appropriate loan. As the technical feasibility of the project (i) Identify the areas of concentration had already been investigated by Technical of the poor. Consultants, a socio-economic survey was (ii) Prepare an inventory of present water called for, so that the World Bank could supply and sanitary facilities. appraise the proposed water supply and sewerage scheme as per their procedure and (iii) Assess the appropriate norms for requirements, prior to their loan assistance. supply to various income groups, with The WRMB entrusted the task of socio a view to reducing incidence of economic survey of this area to the Tata water-borne diseases.

The Investigator is grateful to the officers of the Bombay Metropolitan Region Deve­ lopment Authority and also the research team of the Unit for Urban Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, for the valuable help and co-operation in conducting the study. 148 P. K. MUTTAGI

(iv) Ascertain the percentage of consu­ (5) Officers of the Municipal Councils. mers who can pay for the water (6) Officers of the Zilla Parishad. and sewerage services, (7) BDOs and VDOs. (8) Presidents and elected members of The major organisations from which data the Municipalities, the Zilla Parishad, were gathered are: the Gram Panchayats, and other Public Bodies. 1. Water Resources Management Board 2. Municipalities in the Project Area Several formats were prepared and used 3. Thane Zilla Parishad to collect data from primary and secondary 4. District Health Officer, Thane sources. Thus, an exhaustive schedule was 5. Office of the Block Development prepared to collect information from the Officers municipalities, which included questions on 6. Gram Panchayats and Panchayat the operation of the schemes, the water Samitis supply and sewerage system, the financial 7. Offices of the Village Development management and so on. Another exhaus­ Officers tive questionnaire was designed to collect 8. Directorate of Economics and Stati­ information from the rural areas. This in­ stics, Maharashtra cluded questions on the population, the 9. Chief Inspector of Factories, Maha­ socio-economic conditions, the number of rashtra industries etc., in addition to the questions 10. Environmental Engineering Organi­ asked to the municipalities. sation A separate schedule was prepared and 11. Maharashtra Industrial Development sent to the Presidents and Chief Officers of Corporation the municipalities and likewise, to the Pre­ 12. The Offices of the Government of sidents of the Gram Panchayats and the Maharashtra Panchayat Samitis, as well as to the elected 13. Public and Private Libraries representatives of the people. 14. National Malaria Eradication Unit A fairly exhaustive schedule was mailed 15. Various Urban Development Autho­ to 30 experts in Bombay and other cities rities in India. This questionnaire covered several 16. Bombay Municipal Corporation. aspects of the system — water supply, sewe­ 17. Various Manufactures' Associations. rage facilities, metering of supply, tariff 18. Directorate of Health Services, practices and structure, minimum require­ Poona. ment of water etc. In addition, comprehen­ Similarly, primary data were collected sive personal discussions were held with from different consumer groups and know­ some experts from Bombay and other cities. ledgeable persons, the major ones being:- A questionnaire was also sent to 25 diffe­ rent Development Authorities all over (1) Domestic Consumers. India, to understand the activities of such (2) Industrial and Commercial Establish­ authorities. A separate schedule was pre­ ments. pared to collect information from industrial (3) Non-domestic non-commercial esta­ and commercial establishments and other blishments, like hospitals and schools. non-domestic consumers, and an actual sur­ (4) Knowledgeable persons from Bombay vey was conducted among 202 commercial and outside. establishments and 35 industries. Last but A SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE PROJECT AREA 149 by no means the least, a separate schedule size, followed by the urban and semi-urban was canvassed among 2000 households, who areas. were domestic consumers. It dealt with de­ There were 245 slums in the project area mographic data, the type of dwelling, in­ in 1976. A majority of the slums (67.35 come and expenditure pattern, possession of percent) are found in Thane and Ulhasna­ durables including livestock, diseases in the gar. Over 3 lakh people (36.18 percent) of family, water supply and sewerage facilities the total population live in slums. A size­ etc. able section of the population in Amber- nath (64.01 percent) and nearly half the Major Findings population of Thane (46.05 percent) and Ulhasnagar (41.98 percent) live in slums. The data reveal that for various reasons, Dombivli has the lowest percentage of slum the population has been growing rapidly in pockets, hutments and slum population. the entire project area. There has been an There are 35659 housing structures in 91 over-all increase from 30 percent to 60 per­ villages. Considering the number of villages cent in the decades between 1951-61 and in each Taluka, villages in Thane Taluka 1961-71 in all the municipal towns, the in­ seem to have a greater number of houses. crease is very great in the case of Dombivli A sizeable number of the houses in the and nominal in the case of non-municipal rural area (41.34 percent) are pucca struc­ towns, although it is less pronounced, while tures. Hutments and Kuccha structures are in the case of the villages, the increases found in larger number in the villages of may appear to be comparatively limited. Bhiwandi taluka. Thus although the different towns and vil­ There are 251 schools in the 5 towns*. lages are apparently at different stages of They are either run by the municipalities, urbanisation, the entire project area is grow­ by private bodies or individuals. While ing very rapidly. There is considerable the number of private schools is almost population growth in the project area both two times that of municipal schools, the due to migration and natural increase. In number of students studying in private fact, at least in the towns, there are in schools is only marginally higher than the general, three-five births for every death. number of students studying in municipal In the year 1971 the population of the schools, indicating that municipal schools project areas was 8,78,639; of which 71.19 cater to more children than do private percent lived in the urban areas, 7.42 per­ schools. cent in semi-urban areas and 21.39 percent On the basis of the child population for lived in rural areas. Thane and Ulhasnagar the year 1971 (17 percent of the total popu­ are class I towns having a population over lation) the child population for the year one lakh. The total population of the project 1978 may be estimated to be 122116. An area is expected to increase to 16, 19,000 overwhelming majority of 82.98 percent of by 1983. children in the age group 6-12 years attend The average household size of the project school. There is variation between towns area is (4.92) or almost five. However varia­ especially in the case of Dombivli and tions can be observed between the towns, Bhiwandi, in the proportion of children at­ the semi-urban areas and the rural areas. tending primary school. Though the number The rural sector has the largest household of students in municipal and private schools

* Requisite information could not be obtained from the 6th town namely, Kalyan. 150 P. K. MUTTAGI does not show significant variation, the of respiratory diseases may be attri­ number of teachers working in private buted to industrialisation particularly, the schools is appreciably greater. textile and chemical industries. Barring Ambernath, there are generally Contaminated water is the major source more private hospitals than public/Govern­ for the spread of diseases like Dysentry, ment hospitals in these towns. The rural Cholera, and Jaundice. Contamination may areas have several Government clinics usual­ take place at different points such as the ly in the form of primary health centres. source, the distribution system or the con­ Coming down to the bed strength 75.78 sumer point. Out of 1989 sample house­ percent of the total hospital beds are to be holds, 397 households have members who found in the hospitals of Thane and Ulhas- suffered from waterborne diseases during nagar, while Bhiwandi has the lowest num­ the last one year. Jaundice and Typhoid ac­ ber of beds in the urban area. Though the count for more than half the affected house­ public hospitals have 47.66 percent of the holds. Mere availability of water supply or total available beds in the urban area, they latrine facilities do not seem to make much have treated 64.99 percent of the total in­ difference in the incidence of water-borne patients. Inquiries reveal that since public diseases. Quite a few people living in the hospitals are overcrowded, patients are dis­ project area go daily out of their town for charged as early as possible. work and other purposes and may use un­ Although the rural area has more Govern­ protected water elsewhere. Or again it is ment Hospitals than the urban area, the possible that as many households use wells latter has many private doctors, and the or other sources of contaminated water it number of doctors serving in Government may result in contamination at the source Hospitals is limited. The rural hospitals are point of supply within the town itself. It however in a better position than the urban is as essential therefore to supply adequate hospitals when it comes to the strength of quantity of safe water as it is to be con­ subordinate staff. tinuously on guard to eliminate the possi­ The cause of death in a good majority bilities of contamination. of cases (62.54 percent in 1977) is not avail­ The reported incidence of water-borne able. To the extent information is available, diseases is the highest in Umbarde village of heart diseases and accidents appear to be Kalyan Taluka and the lowest in Bhayan- the major causes. The statistics for the en­ dar of Thane Taluka. The incidence of di­ tire state of Maharashtra show that respi­ seases as reported for the year 1976 is ratory diseases like tuberculosis are the higher than for the year 1977, in the vil­ major causes of death. In the urban area, lages of Thane and Bhiwandi Talukas. On over 15 percent of deaths are due to heart the other hand, villages of Kalyan Taluka diseases. Cancer too emerges as a major have reported more cases of water-borne cause of death in the towns. A shift in the diseases in the year 1977. This includes the cause of death from communicable diseases cases reported in the primary health cen­ to chronic diseases is observable. The health tres and Zilla Parishad Dispensaries of services available in the towns help reduce these villages. It is difficult to assign any the incidence of death due to communicable particular reason for the same. The total diseases. The high number of deaths due number of primary vaccinations given dur­ to accidents or injuries may be due to the ing the last three years do not show any high level of industrialisation in this area. consistent trend, although there is marginal Likewise, the greater incidence of cases increase in the number of persons vaccinat- A SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE PROJECT AREA 151 ed in 1977. Total re-vaccinations during the shops in 1977-78, as against 21,257 shops last three years show a decreasing trend. in 1975-76. A similar trend can be observed Cholera and Typhoid are still prevalent in in the case of other types of commercial this country. The total number of innocula- establishments, clearly suggesting the in­ tions against Cholera and Typhoid during fluence of rapid urbanisation. With regard the last three years shows a very sharp in­ to the growth of commercial establishments crease. In 1977 alone, nearly 49,000 persons in rural area, there are 358 hotels in 70 have been innoculated. On the whole, it villages and 1,540 shops in 74 villages, out appears that adequate measures have been of 104 villages. Although no comparative taken to prevent small-pox. Cholera and figures are available for the years prior to Typhoid. Though small-pox has been eradi­ 1977-78, there is undoubtedly an increase cated from the country, routine re-vaccina­ in the number of every type of commercial tion campaigns need to be carried out establishment in the rural areas too. This among the poor. brings out prominently, the fact that these The industrial growth of the Bombay Me­ areas have been undergoing rapid urbanisa­ tropolitan Region has been very rapid in tion in recent years. the last few years. Today, this is one of the An analysis of the pattern of employ­ most highly industrialised regions in the ment in the project area as it prevailed in country. Although the industrial location 1971 reveals, that a third of the total popu­ policy may affect further development and lation consists of workers engaged in diffe­ cause the growth pattern to change, the rent types of occupations. Though the per­ present level has come to stay. An analysis centage of workers varies from one town of the literature available in this regard to the other. Bhiwandi has the highest per­ shows unmistakably, that industry has re­ centage (42.04) of workers and Ulhasnagar gistered a tremendous growth and impact the lowest (28.10). A majority of the wor­ on the region. Of a total of 1,553 industries kers are engaged in the secondary sector oc­ in the Thane District, as many as 1,201 are cupations in the project area, though there within the BMR Project Area. There are is only a marginal difference between rural only 352 industrial units in the rest of the and urban areas in the proportion of the district. The project area is extremely im­ workers engaged in secondary sector occupa­ portant for industrial activity. There is con­ tions. This shows the rural areas in the siderable potential for further growth and Project Area to be getting industrialised consequently for further urbanisation and too. Only one-tenth of the workers are en­ greater demand for public utilities. It is gaged in primary sector occupations though important to note that the industries actual­ in the rural area, nearly a third of the ly working in 1976-77 were fewer in num­ Workers are engaged in primary sector ber than those during the previous year. occupations. The BMR Project area has a However, the employment in this sector has higher percentage of workers employed in increased considerably, notwithstanding the secondary sector than the city of Bombay, number of units which have closed down i.e. the proportion of workers engaged in for various reasons and the number of em­ manufacturing activities is higher in the ployees in the organised sector in the pro­ project area. This may be partly a result ject area has gone up. of the spill-over effect of industries from By and large, there is yearly increase in Greater Bombay, caused by the new indus­ every type of commercial establishment in all trial location policy. Greater Bombay thus the towns and villages. There were 23,268 has a higher percentage of workers in the 152 P. K. MUTTAGI tertiary sector than the project area. monthly per capita income. The Municipal Councils recover revenue It is possible to conclude that less than in accordance with the provisions of the 10 percent of the people are very poor and Maharashtra Municipalities Act, 1965. The have a negligible capacity to pay. Nearly compulsory taxes include CPT, octroi, thea­ 30 percent have some capacity to pay in tre tax, etc., and the voluntary taxes include different degrees, another 30 percent have tax on vehicles, dogs, drainage tax, special fairly adequate capacity to pay, while the water tax, special sanitary cess, tax on pil­ remaining 30 percent have very good or grims etc. While income has shown increase high capacity. (Vide Table 1). in all the towns, expenditure too keeps pace, leaving little margin for undertaking TABLE 1 development works. While Thane has the PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION OF HOUSEHOLDS AC­ CORDING TO MONTHLY INCOME (IN RUPEES) IN THE highest revenue level followed by Bhiwandi, BMR PROJECT AREA Dombivli has the lowest revenue level. All the towns, disclose a revenue surplus, which N = 1989 indicates that if a necessity arises for meet­ Class Percentage Cumulative ing a part of the subsidy required for sup­ percentage plying water to the weaker sections at a lower rate, the revenue of the towns 0- 100 1,31 1.31 can bear the subsidy. Rates and taxes are 100- 200 5.98 7.29 the largest source of revenue for all the 200- 300 9.45 municipalities and grants-in-aid do not con­ 16.f4 tribute substantially to the revenues. 300- 450 21.77 38.51 The Gram Panchayats too appear to be 450- 600 15.84 54.35 financially capable of undertaking some 600- 750 11.92 66.27 schemes for water supply and sanitation in general, or can at least share the expendi­ 750-1000 11.56 77.83 ture on these schemes with other agencies 1000-2000 16.29 94,12 of the State Government. 2000 + 4.57 98.69 In considering the percentage of house­ holds of differing capacities to pay, it may N.R. 1.31 100.00 be clarified that the household income, the Note: N = Sample Size household expenditure as well as per capita NR = No Response and expenditure are among the several fac­ tors which have been taken into account Water Supply: to arrive at the final grouping. A small minority of 7.29 percent of the households Various schemes for water supply have have either a very low capacity or only ne­ been implemented in the Project area from gligible capacity to pay for the services. Of time to time. As such schemes were gene­ the total number of households, almost one- rally taken up on adhoc basis, certain short­ third have some capacity to pay although it comings are inherent in them clearly indi­ varies in degrees, 28 percent of the house­ cating the absence of an overall compre­ holds have a fairly adequate capacity and hensive plan. some 35 percent of the households have The existing water supply in the urban very good capacity to pay. A slightly diffe­ sector of the project area is inadequate. rent picture emerges when we take the Thus in Thane and Bhiwandi. there is con- A SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE PROJECT AREA 153 siderable inadequacy whereas in the other taking up a project involving schemes for towns there is an abundance. In Bhayandar filtered water supply and underground sewe­ there is acute shortage, while in Kulgaon, rage in the project area. Thus for the first there is round the clock supply and Mohone time, an integrated plan for the schemes stands between the two. There are other has been prepared and attempts are being differences by way of quality, tariff, timings, made to implement its smooth and timely duration and in fact, in every conceivable execution. dimension. The distribution system is defec­ In actual practice, every household must tive and hence some of the poorer sections be ensured of an adequate quantity of safe do not get any water. This may be attribut­ and protected water at a time and place ed to the fact that in general, the design convenient and which has the necessary has not been able to take into considera­ sanitation facilities. Not merely has the tion the needs of these people and so pro­ total quantity to be augmented but a pro­ vision seems to depend more or less on the per distribution system has to be devised paying capacity as well as the degree to and the administrative set up improved. which the demand is pressing. We have to take into account the overall A direct consequence is that a sizeable benefits of such projects in terms of im­ section of the population and the poorer proved health, increased agricultural and sections of society in particular, are forced industrial output and other similar benefits. to pull on as best as they can, without a In other words, greater recognition should minimum quantum of safe water. The dis­ be given to the fact that the provision of parity between the rural and urban sectors public water supplies and other environmen­ is even more glaring. Thus in several vil­ tal health activities are essentially preventive lages the households are compelled to ex­ measures. Economic consideration should pend a considerable amount of time and not be allowed to stand in the way of mea­ energy in an attempt to fetch enough water sures designed to improve the quality of for drinking and cooking purposes and life or to save human lives. The prevention other household chores. of disability, morbidity and mortality The defective system has been complicat­ caused by water-borne diseases is in itself ed even more by the conflicting and con­ sufficient justification for the provision of troversial roles at times played by the seve- safe water supply. It seems essential that ral agencies involved in supplying water to in designing the water supply scheme, pro­ this area such as the BMC, MIDC and per per capita requirement should be taken ENE, for each has its specific policies, plans into consideration both for the urban and and tariff, rates. Such uncoordinated plan­ rural areas, ning and indifferent execution exert a fur­ An average supply rate of 25 LPCD (per ther strain on whatever limited resources capita per day) is considered the barest are available. As a first step, such institu­ minimum for survival. This provides water tional weaknesses caused by overlapping for drinking and cooking purposes only. It responsibilities due to ill-defined functions is desirable to adopt a higher quantum of will have to be eliminated or reduced to a supply 40 — 50 LPCD in the interests of minimum. the health and well-being of the people. If In addition to improving the existing supply is drawn through individual private system of supply as well as providing one connections, it will have to be at a higher in the areas where none exists at present, rate. If it is through public standposts, it the WRMB of the BMRDA has proposed will be at a lower rate. Likewise, if sewe- 154 P. K. MUTTAGJ

rage facilities are available, the supply will of cattle can be placed at 45 litres per head have to be higher. On the whole, the desir­ per day. Village tanks or improvised wells able quantum of water supply appears to may be constructed on the nallahs or rivers be as follows; which are close to each village so that the monsoon and post-monsoon flows can be TABLE 2 stored for the use of cattle in the summer LITRES PER HEAD PER DAY months. The implication is that some pro­ vision needs to be made to ensure that cattle have drinking water available to them. Per capita consumption of water in house­ holds depending on public standposts is far lower than in dwellings with private indivi­ dual connections. By its very nature, a standpost restricts the level of consumption and therefore, with a certain quantity of water, larger numbers of people can be served at lower cost than in a system with As the non-municipal towns in the project house connections. Such standposts may area are at varying stages of urbanisation, be public standposts which can be used by it may be advisable to adopt a higher per household or, common taps which are own­ capita quantum of supply in some cases, e.g. ed and maintained by a group of house­ Bhayandar. holds. It is important to encourage the When considering the demands of the poorer sections of the urban residents as rural sector, there is an additional factor well as the village people to go in for public to be taken into account viz, cattle. The standposts, as a first step, when either requirements of water for cattle do not seem because they are not in a position to afford to have been so far taken into account in it or the system itself has to incorporate designing the rural water supply schemes such a feature, on other relevant considera­ in the project area. Although the exact figu- tions eg. there is no place in the dwelling res of the cattle population are not avail­ to put in a tap and drain the waste water. able, some studies do indicate that it may This will ensure upkeep and complaints be­ almost equal the human population. It is ing attended to. As the economic conditions well known that the village economy and improve and alongwith it, their dwellings, in fact the very existence of a village de­ they can gradually switch over to individual pends heavily upon the cattle so that for household connections. the average villager, providing water for Filtration of water, it appears does not the cattle is at least as important as sup­ by itself guarantee protection from water- plying human beings with water. Hence borne diseases. The filtered water can get some provision needs to be made in the polluted in the distribution line and by the proposed plan though not necessarily piped time it: reaches the consumer, the water may water. Existing sources of human water already have been contaminated. This in supply will be available for the cattle too. fact seems to be the case to some extent. However, additional sources need to be To prevent this completely, changing or explored. repairing the entire distribution system in It may be presumed that the requirement some places may be called for. Further, a A SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE PROJECT AREA 155

large population in the project area com­ Sewerage mute from one city or village to another city. As stated earlier, a large number of Human waste is the most important fac­ people from the dormitory towns in parti­ tor causing pollution. Inadequate disposal cular, commute to Bombay and other places of such waste results in the spread of com­ every day. Even if we provide filtered water municable diseases and otherwise degrades in one or more of the towns, it would be the quality of the living environment. no guarantee of the elimination of the in­ Studies have shown that industries in gene­ cidence of waterborne diseases. In the light ral, account for only a small percent of the of this fact and in view of the cost, it may total population. The rest is of domestic be desirable to avoid filtration for the pre­ origin. While this poses a serious problem sent, and make water otherwise safe and in urban India today, it is likely to grow potable by methods such as chlorination. much more acute in the years to come not This does not however imply that filtration only in the urban areas but in the rural should be discontinued where it already areas too. It is hence very important to im­ exists or indefinitely deferred. It only sug­ prove the sewage disposal by proper treat­ gests that priority be given to assuring a ment in the interests of ensuring environ­ minimum quantum for all sections of the mental sanitation. people. Further investment in filtration may Sanitary conditions are extremely poor be made subsequent to providing the mini­ particularly in the slums of the project area. mum quantum specified. While latrines have been built and side Intermittent water supply invariably gutters constructed in several slums under results in contamination because when the the recent Slum Improvement Scheme, their pressures in the distribution system is rather maintenance has been rather unsatisfactory. low, there is no resistance to in-filtration Thus, in the areas where these have been of pollutants from outside. In addition, provided, not only is faecal matter often there may be considerable wastage at the visible but a foul odour emanates from the consumer end. Round the clock supply too latrines encouraging swarms of flies. The has several disadvantages, most important unhygienic atmosphere has added aggrava­ among these being increase in wastage as tions to contend with, such as urine and well as leakage which get magnified. Since water splashes and pits filling up too rapidly. both these systems have their own defects, As a result, sullage disposal poses a major no preference for any one system can be problem. indicated at this stage of the development. Since the public latrines built more re­ It must be emphasised that whatever sys- cently, are of the flush type generally, they stem is adopted, monitoring to detect and need plenty of water. As water is inade­ prevent leakage and wastage should be in­ quate in the areas inhabited by the econo­ tensified. The minimum quantity of water mically weaker sections of society, there is which has been indicated must be ensured an acute sanitation problem. That is the with reasonable safety at a time convenient latrines do not function, the sanitary fit­ to the consumer, tings/connections get chocked and a sanita­ There is indication to suggest that in tion problem is created. some areas water wastage and leakage may By and large, the question of rural sani­ even be as high as 50 percent. Saving the tation has been totally ignored and the pre­ water loss due to leakage and wastage may sent project too for which the feasibility help in meeting part of the future demands. report has been prepared, there is no pro- 156 P. K. MUTTAGI vision for sanitation facilities for the rural realise the importance of using latrines. It areas.* is also likely that a majority in the rural Implementing an effective rural sanitation areas do not have the expertise to construct programme however, presents a few pro­ and maintain latrines. Lack of adequate blems. For instance, villagers who have trained personnel is another problem. Hence grown accustomed to using open spaces in the chances are that any sophisticated type the fields, for defecation, are likely to resist of latrines would not work in the rural a change. Quite a few of them may not areas.

* Discussions with the member secretary, WRMB revealed that a separate project for rural sanitation follows. This is estimated to cost 2.5 crores approximately and attempts to pro­ vide facilities for disposal of the sullage as well as for the construction of public latrines of the simple variety (14th July 1979).

The Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol. XLI, No. 2, (July 1980)