Need assessment of water and sanitation practices in a rural community (India)

A developing country like India is still facing problems such as unsafe and inadequate water availability, lack of toilet facilities and apathy of the society to personal hygiene. This results in open defecation, which pollutes water and soil and causes communicable diseases. The main objective is to study the existing water and sanitation facilities in rural areas and suggest remedial plans. Research was undertaken in the rural areas of the Kamone village, district solapur, Maharashtra in India. The size of the sample was determined on the basis of random sampling method. Out of 309 families, 110 families were chosen for quantitative data collection through structured questionnaires and structured interviews with local leaders, school Headmaster, Teachers, Anganwadi Sevikas, and Gramsevak for acquiring data. The other medium for primary data collection was observation, for analyzing the condition of infrastructure facilities available in the village especially in relation to drinking water, sanitation, waste management and health. Discussions with the women, adolescent girls and youth & farmers were conducted for getting a significant insight into the issues of the community groups. The qualitative data was also obtained through drawing of the village map with the participation of villagers, resource map and structured based discussions.