Community Initiatives in Water Resource Management for Rural Drinking Water Supply
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A Partnership with the Government and Communities in the Maharashtra Water and Sanitation Programs Community Initiatives in Water Resource Management for Rural Drinking Water Supply Best Practice Document March 2007 Maharashtra Transforming water scarcity to water sufficiency has been the goal of the reforms in rural drinking water sector under the 10th Five Year Plan of Government of India (GOI). This has signified a paradigm shift in government policy with interchanging roles of the government from a service provider, singularly executing all rural water supply schemes to that of a facilitator, strengthening community initiatives in water resource management. In this approach, the hitherto function of rural communities as mere end- users of water schemes has transitioned to equal partners in the planning, implementation, operation and maintenance of schemes of their choice. Thereby promoting synergy between the community and state efforts through a bottom-up, participatory and decentralized system for water management. Coverage 33 districts. UNICEF Support Capacity building and information, education and In Maharashtra, the UNICEF Child’s communication (IEC) activities in all the 33 districts. Environment Project (CEP) partners with Technical support in 10 districts, viz. Ahmednagar, the state government to facilitate community Aurangabad, Chandrapur, Latur, Nandurbar, Nashik, initiatives in rural drinking water sector. In Osmanabad, Sangli, Satara and Yavatmal. many villages, the adoption of new water Cost and Cost Central and state funds only for capital costs. harvesting technologies combined with Sharing Community contribution for partial sharing of conventional mechanisms of recharging capital costs and full responsibility for operation and drinking water resources have significantly maintenance costs. UNICEF funding for capacity building increased the availability and access to water and IEC activities as well as technical support. catalyzing drinking water security. At the same time, this has impacted community Implemented by Village Water and Sanitation Committees (VWSCs) innovations for disciplined and regulated under the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) at the village water use and altering water consumption level. Coordinated by the District Water Management practices. and Sanitation Committees (DWMSCs) under the Zilla Parishads (ZPs). This best practice document is based on the Technology Roof top rainwater harvesting, underground canals, field visits to people-centered and community- cement canals, jacket well, stream blasting, Gabian led activities in rural drinking water bunds, gully plugging, etc. management in two villages each in the districts of Ahmednagar, Sangli and Satara United Nations Children’s Fund in Maharashtra. 19, Parsi Panchayat Road Andheri (East), Mumbai - 400069 systems for the end-users – to that of a facilitator of community initiatives. The sector reforms cumulatively underpinned a decentralized service delivery system coupled with a bottom-up approach. Within the next three years, several pilot projects were initiated in more than 60 districts across various states in the country as part of the Sector Reforms Project. These projects piloted the conditions that people would be willing to pay partial capital costs and fully operate and maintain water supply schemes Community efforts in rainwater harvesting recharge village ponds. if (a) they own the assets, (b) they (Nagewadi village, Sangli district.) have themselves planned and installed the systems and been Glossary of local terms actively involved throughout Anganwadi–Early childhood education centers; Gram Panchayat–Village local the implementation process, self-governing body; Gram Sabha–Village meeting; Panchayat Samiti–Panchayat committee at block level; Sarpanch–Gram Panchayat head; Zilla Parishad–District council (c) they have been trained to do at district level; simple repairs, (d) they know the Government will not maintain Background participatory and demand the assets, (e) they have sufficient In 1999, the Government of India responsive approach, wherein the funds for maintenance, and (f) (GOI) initiated reforms in the rural users obtained the level of service they have to pay for operation drinking water sector to ensure they desired and could afford to and maintenance of the systems. sustainability of water supply pay part of the capital cost and full Therefore, it was considered systems and programs. This was operation and maintenance cost necessary to institutionalize motivated by the recognition thereby generating a sentiment of community based rural drinking that despite substantial state ownership among them. The key water supply programs with the investment in rural drinking concepts of the reforms focused Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) water supply infrastructure on changing the roles of both the to generate resources and equip and systems, a large number of end-users or local communities local communities to effectively these schemes failed due to poor and the state. The role of the plan, implement, use, maintain operation and maintenance in community was increased to and repair water supply schemes the post construction phase, as build their participation in the themselves. Consequently, the they critically lacked integration planning, design, implementation, adoption of the sector reforms of the demands or preferences of operation and maintenance of highlighted the urgency in the end-users. The sector reforms schemes of their choice, while promoting a strong convergence thus marked a paradigm shift the role of the government was in government and community in the Government’s hitherto transformed from a service initiatives, social mobilization, target-based and supply-driven provider – that singularly designed and capacity building of the approach towards a distinct and executed all rural water supply community and its institutions. 2 Child’s Environment Project The experience of the various Objectives sources by conservative and pilot projects in the rural drinking The key objectives of community non-conservative methods. water supply indicated the water management for rural • Reopening the sources in the need for a holistic approach for drinking water supply are to wells and ponds by increasing drinking water and sanitation ensure: their depth and removing to have additional impetus for • Tanker-free villages. sludge. scaling up of the reform initiative • Equity in access to, and use • Conservative methods like in the entire country under and distribution of drinking underground canals, cement the 10th Five Year Plan. In this water resources. canals, etc. direction, all the reform initiatives • Change in water consumption • Non-conservative methods like in rural drinking water sector patterns. jacket well, water fracturing, were brought under the national • Wa t e r m a n a g e m e n t i n recharge shaft in the well, program of Swajaldhara launched scarcity. horizontal borewell, stream in December 2002. • Gender sensitivity and blasting, etc. enhanced participation of Maharashtra has been among one women. Swajaldhara of the foremost states to implement • Social inclusion. Objectives the changed policy perspective in To institute process-oriented rural the area of rural water management These objectives guide the two drinking water supply initiatives and sanitation. UNICEF-India as a rural drinking water supply that enable the community to have strong advocate of greater equity schemes promoted by the GOM access to acceptable, adaptable, and sustainability of water supply – Shiv Kalin Pani Sathavan Yojana sustainable and affordable through community management and Swajaldhara. safe drinking water system, of water resources promotes based on people’s preferences availability and access to safe water Shiv Kalin Pani Sathavan with their participation in the and sanitation facilities through Yojana physical completion of water its Child’s Environment Project Objectives supply schemes, and taking full (CEP). Among all the 33 districts To increase availability of drinking responsibility for operation and in Maharashtra, UNICEF provides water and water for domestic maintenance of the system. capacity building and information, purpose; and strengthening education and communication sources of drinking water by water Components (IEC) support. In addition, it conservation. The scheme includes The selection of drinking water also provides technical support conservative and unconventional supply technology for any in the districts of Ahmednagar, methods of recharging drinking community is determined by a Aurangabad, Chandrapur, Latur, water sources. number of factors: Nandurbar, Nashik, Osmanabad, • Technical feasibility. Sangli, Satara and Yavatmal. The Components • Site-specific conditions such focus of UNICEF-Government of • Roof top rainwater harvesting as availability and reliability Maharashtra (GOM) collaboration (RTRWH) in the public and of electric supply, level and has been on developing policy private buildings in the village/ quality of ground water, etc. guidelines, systematic planning town. • Preferences and requirements of and capacity building of key • Digging pits in the hilly users in taking up conservation stakeholders, as well as IEC landscapes in the village to measures through rainwater and technical support in the block streams and collect harvesting and groundwater implementation of Shiv Kalin water from them for drinking recharge systems. Pani Sathavan Yojana and purpose. • Willingness of users