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16 Articles

Quality of Drinking Water in Urban Areas: A Case Study of Delhi

Social Development Forum Discussion

Access to clean and safe drinking water is of paramount importance for public health, yet urban slum dwellers often face significant challenges in maintaining water quality. In the context of Delhi’s urban slum areas, this 12-month follow-up study examines the deteriorating quality of drinking water, in the capital city of Delhi, India, encompassing diverse climatic conditions.

The study employs microbial analysis and assesses physio-chemical parameters to explore contamination levels during water transport and storage, shedding light on the often-overlooked temporal variations in water quality. The findings highlight a concerning scenario where two-thirds of water samples exceeded WHO limits at both tap and household levels, with approximately 60% of samples displaying post-supply deterioration. Seasonal trends reveal contamination peaks during the hot summer months and monsoon season, correlating with temperature and rainfall. The research also delves into the connection between drinking water quality and childhood diarrhoea prevalence. The study captures a contamination pathway from the tap to household storage, emphasizing the influence of transportation, handling, and community environment on water quality. The risk analysis reveals a significant rise in diarrhoea risk linked to total and faecal coliform contamination. Eliminating such contamination could potentially lead to a 33% and 31% reduction in diarrhoea burden, as indicated by Population Attributable Fraction (PAF) analysis.

The study concludes with policy recommendations, advocating for widespread campaigns on water, sanitation, and hygiene, robust real-time monitoring, prioritization of piped water for households, especially in slums, and further research for effective, low-cost urban interventions.

Can Universal Health Coverage achieve the goal of health for all in India: A theoretical and empirical exploration

Speaker: Dr. Sourindra Mohan Ghosh, Assistant Professor, CSD

Discussant: Dr. Dipa Sinha, Assistant Professor, Ambedkar University, Delhi 

Date, Time & Venue: 2.11.2023; 3:30 pm-5:00 pm at DDML Hall, CSD

Abstract

To fulfil the objective of health for all, the World Health Organisation (WHO) Alma Ata Declaration of 1978 endorsed by every country, including India, emphasised building primary health care, which is funded by the government. The Declaration played its part in shaping the first two National Health Policy documents of India (in 1983 and 2002). However, at the 2005 World Health Assembly, the WHO shifted its focus from primary health care to Universal Health Coverage (UHC). The UHC was envisaged to assure care through (a) avoiding catastrophic healthcare expenditure through health-financing reforms, and (b) the availability of equitable and quality health care services that governments will ensure. This shift is reflected in the latest National Health Policy of 2017, which talked about the ‘strategic purchase’ of services from the private sector by the government and health financing reforms. This paper critically evaluates the implications of such a strategy shift for public health care in the States of India. Implications for access to healthcare is also discussed.

Galvanising the Ship of the Indian State: An Agenda for Research and Dialogue

Monday, 31st July, 2023, 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM
DDML Hall, Council for Social Development
Sangha Rachna 53, Lodhi Estate, New Delhi – 110003

Chair: Prof. Muchkund Dubey, President, CSD
Author: Prof. Saurabh Kumar, Visiting Professor, CSD

The accomplishments of the post-independence Indian State can be assessed as good but not good enough; impressive w.r.t. the state of stasis the nation was in under colonial rule yet underwhelming w.r.t. its founding vision and charter — of Sarvodaya through Antyodaya, if they could be so described in capsule form, and of the raison d’etre of the newly founded State being, in the lyrical words of its first Prime Minister, to (be able to) better “wipe (away) every tear from every eye”. India does not come out on top in comparison to the perform-ance of many other developing countries either, China – its only peer in the comity of nations – above all.

That mixed record is the trigger for this Essay, a strategic take on the future prospects of the Indian Republic. So also the new demands on the State machinery stemming from the multi-faceted challenges of climate and AI driven disruptive technological change, and from the state of flux the geo-political and geo-economic environment in India’s neighborhood, ‘near abroad’ and globally is in, which add to the gravity and complexity of the situation. (The challenge of the Chinese Party State galloping ahead, in the undeclared contest between the two nations for ‘Comprehensive National Power’, with its own (a)ideological, ‘results-oriented’ model of ‘neo-liberal’ “socialism with Chinese characteristics”, oxymoronic or whatever, most of all.)

The Paper posits that structural reform, going beyond mere governance reform and policy innovation, will be called for if the delivery capacity of the State machinery (its “structuration and apparatuses”, in the words foregrounded by the noted scholar, Prof. Upendra Baxi) is to be augmented; not just to be brought on par with other high performing nations but, more importantly, to be able to effectively stem the ever-deepening ‘India-Bharat’ dualism by developing capabilities for servicing the basic (human) needs of ‘Bharat’ efficaciously.
It takes the form of a ‘Concept Note’ of a proposal for a study/research-cum-dialogic project for a critical review of the experience of 75 years of the Republic aimed at identifying structural factors that impede optimal performance and remedies for overcoming them. A ‘strategic management’ approach is advocated in respect of the latter (perking up State institutions to make them more functional), viz. not taking existing structures as immutable, while devising ways and means of streamlining and fine-tuning prevailing procedures and arrange-ments for enhanced effectiveness, not excluding a remodeling of the institutional architecture if necessary.

The discussion meeting is envisaged, inter alia, as a brainstorming session for getting the Study part of the project (Section V pgs. 27-33) off the ground, as in the concluding section (Section VIII, Pg. 43).

Looking ahead, the project is expected to throw up a crisp agenda for structural reform of the Indian Republic, thought through thoroughly, pragmatically from the feasibility angle in the course of a ‘Strategic Dialogue’ between key constituencies of the national polity. One that would, hopefully, be ripe for being tossed into the political arena as a contribution to State-building by the intelligentsia, as a strand of statecraft — ever a work-in-progress in any nation-in-the-making — for the political class to mull over.

Academic Autonomy Needed a Holistic Societal Perspective

There are different kinds of institutions of Higher Education in India implementing varying concepts of autonomy. Privately funded institutions mostly work with a narrow view of autonomy. Even those of them that have had a more liberal view of it have been forced to fall in line, due to implicit pressure from the ruling dispensation. The institutions run with government funding have also inevitably lost whatever autonomy they had. The publicly funded universities theoretically can offer greater protection to academics but with few exceptions even they have substantially regressed in the last few decades.

This is a result of growing political pressure and bureaucratization of institutions of Higher Learning. The role of the head of Institutions is crucial in protecting the institution’s autonomy. However, often a narrow view of autonomy is adopted which grants it to the head but not to the academics. Those outside then can control the system for their ends. Society has little idea of these developments and therefore does not react to loss of autonomy of institutions.

In brief, the loss of autonomy in India is an ongoing process due to a lack of wider understanding of the issues. So, it is argued that autonomy is a societal issue requiring a holistic understanding and action.

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Rescheduling of the Workshop on Capacity Building for Resettlement and Rehabilitation of Project Displaced People

February 27-28, 2023
At
India International Centre, New Delhi

Objectives:

  • to familiarize the participants with the complex issues surrounding land acquisition and resettlement
  • to develop among them ability to do Social Impact Assessment and resettlement planning
  • to enhance implementation and monitoring skills.

Participants:

  • senior/middle level government officials,
  • industry managers,
  • NGOs,
  • academics, and
  • those working on internationally-funded projects.

Course Contents:

  • Land Acquisition Law and Rehabilitation Policy: A Historical Perspective
  • Land Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013: Background, Context and Implementation
  • Social Impact Assessment
  • Environmental Impact Assessment
  • Tribal and Gender Issues in Resettlement Projects
  • Social Movements against Displacements
  • Resettlement and Rehabilitation: Case Studies
  • Relocation and Resettlement in Urban Areas
  • Best Practices in Resettlement & Rehabilitation

Course Contribution:

Revised Contributory Fee: INR 5,000;
Concessional Rates for Students and NGOs: INR 3,000

Need-based modest accommodation will be provided to a limited number of outstation participants.

Last date for receiving application/nominations is 5 February 2023.

For further information, please contact
Dr Nivedita Sharma
Assistant Professor
Council for Social Development, Delhi
Phone: 011-24692655/234
Email: nivedita@csdindia.org