Water and sanitation: institutional challenges in India

Proceedings of the seminar on developments in the Indian drinking water and sanitation sector, held in May 2003. The seminar was organized by the Indo-Dutch Programme on Alternative Development (IDPAD). Participants were researchers and practitioners from India and the Netherlands. Part I of the book sets the context: the shift towards a decentralized demand-driven sector, the growing water crisis and the challenge for financial sustainability. The papers in Part II analyse the situation on the ground with cases of self-government, support from NGOs and a specially formed water and sanitation support organization. Part III addresses the great challenge of scaling up the new approaches through pilot projects, capacity building and the new partnerships between the people and public and private sector organizations. The last part of the book draws conclusions on private sector participation in the urban sector, compares developments in water resources management in India with similar developments in Europe and outlines the areas for further research. The book includes an illustrative example from Thunakalan village.