PARTNERSHIPS AND COMMUNITY SANITATION - MALVANI, MUMBAI

A CASE STUDY

YOUTH FOR UNITY AND VOLUNTARY ACTION

52/53 NARE PARK MUNICIPAL SCHOOL

PAREL, MUMBAI - 400 012

INDIA.

 

PARTNERSHIPS AND COMMUNITY SANITATION - MALVANI, MUMBAI

SUMMARY

 

Partnerships And Community Sanitation (PACS) was initiated in July 1996 in Malvani, a resettlement slum in the Western suburb of Malad, Mumbai. It was intended to create and enhance community participation, involvement and responsibility in meeting their sanitation needs while retaining the responsibility of the Municipality. Plots Nos. 23 and 31 were chosen as an area of intervention, specifically because of their abysmal state of sanitation.

The partners involved in the project were:

  1. Non-Governmental Organisation - Youth for Unity and Voluntary Organisation (YUVA) and Apnalaya. The two NGOs would act as facilitators by mobilising, organising and training communities to build sustainable partnerships with authorities for sanitation solutions. There would be a sharing of experiences and ideas so as to feed into strategy.

  2. Community - Based Organisation - Representative groups of residents from the two plots. It would take initiative in advocating their concerns to the authorities so as to gain the right to basic amenities through a collective process.

  3. Peopleís Organisation - Manav Mukti Morcha. Its member would act as animator in the community of which she is a resident.

  4. International Organisation - Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Its representative, R.V. Anderson, would act as a consultant and absorb the soft costs of training technical assistance resource persons.

  5. Municipality - The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) would contribute technical and financial inputs and co-operate in facilitating the process of obtaining sanitation infrastructure.

  6. State Government - Maharashtra Housing Area Development Authority (MHADA). Since the plots were on Collectorate land, belonging to the State Government, infrastructure provision fell under the purview of MHADA.

A survey was carried out in the area to determine the status of the other sanitation and civic amenities in the area on the two plots. The results indicated that toilets, garbage disposal and water supply were the priority problems in the area. To meet the project objectives it was required to mobilise the communities to play an active role in petitioning the State. The strategies brought into play were community education and capacity building to enable residents to take collective action. A factionalised community divided along religious lines came together on a common platform to achieve a common goal.

A community owned, managed and operated toilet and the only one which will have water and electricity connections in the area stands on Plot No. 31, a proud testament to a long drawn struggle successfully concluded. Hindu and Muslim residents must cross over into each other's areas as the gents and women's toilets have been built on either side of the boundary dividing the tenements.

A Toilet committee comprising 10 women and 5 men and a large core group of 33 women and 5 men have been set up.

The survey had revealed a chronic garbage disposal problem due to the absence of a Municipal Collection System. Waste Management component of PACS was initiated at the level of the household.

Since the task of doing away with the kitchen waste fell on children, it was decided to get them involved in vermi-composting. On Plot No.23, a pilot experiment was initiated. The children planted saplings in pots into which the vermi-eggs were introduced. The experiment could not succeed because at the household level, monitoring was not possible. The basic inputs like the pots proved inadequate. The community women and youth have expressed interest in taking up vermi-composting. Hence it has been mooted that a vermi-plot be created where the community can feed its waste.

 

 

 

PARTNERSHIPS AND COMMUNITY SANITATION - MALVANI, MUMBAI

NARRATIVE REPORT

1.0 PROLOGUE

1964. In one fell swoop, entire families and communities residing in the heart of Mumbai's business hub and affluent quarter of Colaba were forcibly evicted from their slums and resettled on the outskirts, the city's periphery. One such re-settlement site is Malvani in Malad (West) 35-40 kms. from Mumbai (Bombay). (Annex I)

Amidst torrential downpours, people found themselves uprooted from their homes and livelihoods and in the midst of a swamp, pockmarked with huge pot-holes. On this bleak and scarred landscape, 10" x15" pitches were provided to families to build temporary structures. The monsoons abated and were followed by summers and winters. Months rolled into years, years into decades. And the bitterness of the upheaval deepened into cynicism as people realised that the ìtemporary transitî site was to be for now and hereafter their permanent residence; without the basic amenities of potable water, toilets, garbage/sewage systems or paved roads that makes life livable. They had been left to fend for themselves.

2.0 EPILOGUE

Youth for Unity and Voluntary Action (YUVA), an NGO was in contact with the youth of Manav Mukti Morcha (Human Liberation Front), a People's Organisation formed under the aegis of YUVA's Mumbai City Project. The Manav Mukti Morcha (MMM) youth expressed their concern about the dismal state of sanitation facilities in Malvani and their desire to improve it.

A Community Sanitation Survey was carried out by YUVA and MMM in July 1996 with the following objectives:

The survey's results confirmed the near absence of sanitation facilities in Malvani. Residents spent between 10 minutes to 480 minutes collecting water in a drum or 2-3 buckets, paying between Rs.2000 to Rs.30,000 per household in a month. The absence of a Municipality tap was acutely felt by more than 20% of the people. Most households drew water from a hand-pump, a task undertaken mainly by women and girls or "bhaiyas". There were complaints of bad quality and low pressure of water. 47 of the 20 seater toilets were not in working condition and most wanted new toilets. The monthly expenses per household for use of this facility was between Rs.15 to Rs.60. Due to the non-availability of a dustbin, waste was thrown into a drain or on the ground. Electricity was supplied through metered connections with the majority of residents spending between Rs.1000 to Rs.2000 monthly. There was no open ground or hospital and health problems were rampant with a large number of people reporting the incidence of malaria and typhoid. This was due to the fact that the main sewage line is not connected to the sewage system in Malvani. The sewage flows into the "nullahs" (open ditches) or open storm water drains in the area and thence into the creek. The sewage which includes water and waste from the toilets is largely untreated. The choked lines and flooded roads, particularly during the monsoons are a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Due to the chronic health problems arising from scarce civic facilities, most residents were willing to pay a lump-sum amount or an average of Rs. 186 per month in order to obtain amenities. YUVA decided to intervene in Malvani through a new arena of operation of community sanitation. The site would be the area covered by the survey, namely Plot Nos.23 and 31.

3.0 AREA OF INTERVENTION