The studies on water and sanitation from many countries reveal that the availability and accessibility to protected drinking water, sanitation and personal hygiene, environment, control of diseases and health of the people are closely linked. The WHO estimates that 10 per cent of all diseases in the world each year are related to water quality and access issues, which could be prevented. The book based on a study of three Indian states—Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, looks at the catalytic role of village level institutions such as Village Water and Sanitation Committees (VWSCs) and Village Health and Sanitation Committees (VHSCs) in improving the water and sanitation facilities of the communities. The positive health outcomes largely depend on how various institutions, processes and programmes interact with one another. The volume also looks at the health outcomes of individuals and households and their linkage with access to water and sanitation facilities as well as their health and hygiene practices.

Researchers working on health issues, in particular, on water and sanitation and its effects on health; NGOs working in the area of health and hygiene; and policy makers at various levels (centre, state and district level) will be interested in the book.

“This book, based on extensive research in three states (AP, MP and Odisha) is very timely and highlights the status of rural sanitation in India. It uncovers the false claims regarding sanitation coverage and NGP status in the rural areas. The research clearly underlines the need for a reality check of achieving the objective of ‘Swatch Bharat’. The research provides a bird’s-eye view of the herculean task ahead for achieving the Swatch Bharat in the near future and provides insights into some of critical issues like behavioural changes and institutional requirements.”
— V. Ratna Reddy, Director Livelihoods and Natural Resource Management Institute (LNRMI), Hyderabad.

“This is a unique book on WASH, which presents comprehensive database and analyses from India on the impact of water supply and sanitation interventions on the health status of rural communities based on primary survey, covering three major states. A must read for Indian policy makers in the WASH sector.”
— M. Dinesh Kumar, Executive Director, Institute for Resource Analysis and Policy (IRAP), Hyderabad.

K.S. Babu is an Associate Professor at Centre for Economic and Social Studies (CESS), Hyderabad. He has MA in Anthropology from Andhra University, Visakhapatnam and PhD from University of Delhi, Delhi. He has 25 years of research experience in the fields of healthcare, health insurance, NGOs, rural development, tribal development etc. He has published articles in professional journals. He has co-edited (with S. Mahendra Dev) two books: India: Some Aspects of Economic and Social Development and India’s Development: Social and Economic Disparities. His current research focuses on medical tourism, water and sanitation, and tribal issues.

M. Gopinath Reddy is Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the CESS, Hyderabad and also Principal Coordinator for the Division for Sustainable Development Studies (DSDS) at the CESS. He was Principal Coordinator for the recently concluded Research Unit for Livelihoods and Natural Resources (RULNR), supported by Jamsetji Tata Trust (JSTT, Mumbai) and brought a number of monographs/working papers under forest ecosystem spanning across major forest states of India. He has published various articles relating to forest governance and livelihoods and natural resources in the journals of Development and Change, The Small Scale Forestry Journal, Economic and Political Weekly and written chapters in the book titled: Forests, People and Power: The Political Ecology of Reform in South Asia. He has written two books: Political Economy of Watershed Management: Policies, Institutions, Implementation & Livelihoods (co-authored with Ratna Reddy and John Soussan) and A Study of Redistributive Politics and its Impact on PRIs: A Case of Assembly Constituency Development Programme (MLA LADS Scheme in Andhra Pradesh).

S. Galab, a Development Economist, is currently Director, CESS, Hyderabad, and is also leading the Young Lives—an International Longitudinal Project in Andhra Pradesh, on childhood poverty. He has carried out research in the broad field of rural development on various aspects like rehabilitation and resettlement of project affected people, natural resource management, solid waste management in urban areas, handloom and power loom sector, agrarian distress and farmers’ suicides, rural indebtedness, MGNREGS, dry land agriculture. He has also worked on the effectiveness of public policies related to poverty alleviation including social capital, women empowerment, child labour and livelihoods. He was a member of Farmers Welfare Commission appointed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh in response to the agrarian crisis in the united state of Andhra Pradesh. He is presently a member of the Commission on “Sustainable Agriculture Development of Andhra Pradesh”. He is one of the co-editors of the books: On Joint Forest Management in Andhra Pradesh; Organising Poor Women: The Andhra Pradesh Experience and Centre-State Relations in Indian Fiscal Context.

P. Usha is a Project Research Associate who worked for the project “Study on Water and Sanitation Programmes and Health Status of the Communities: A Study of Three Indian States, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh” at the CESS, Hyderabad. She did MA in Population Studies from Annamalai University and has worked on reproductive and child health.