Original Query: Dr. B K Sharma, Gwalior Childrens Hospital, Madhya Pradesh

Posted: 9 December 2005

Dear friends,

I am posting this query on behalf of Gwalior Childrens Hospital, a grassroots organization in Madhya Pradesh. We are working in Gwalior and Chambal region especially in rural areas and building the Orphanage- Snehalaya near village Sikroda, where there is no infrastructure for sanitation at present. We are hoping to cater for 100 children and adults in its first phase though shall expand it to accommodate 500 children and adults there ultimately.

From Aniruddhe Mukerjee, Government of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal

Posted 21 May 2007

Dear Members,

I used to work for the UN-HABITAT on the Water for Asian Cities Programme, which aims to support developing countries in Asia and Pacific to achieve sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation for the poor, particularly in urban areas. In Madhya Pradesh, the programme is working in four cities of the state, viz. Bhopal, Gwalior, Indore and Jabalpur for improvement and expansion of urban water supply, sewerage and sanitation, water drainage and solid waste management.

Original Query: Sheldon Mendonca, Watershed Organization Trust (WOTR), Ahmednagar

Posted: 28 June 2006

I work with the renewable energy department recently formed by Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR). WOTR is looking to use renewable energy technologies to attempt solving the energy problems faced by communities in rural Maharashtra.

In this context, I would be grateful, if members of the community can share with me:

From Priyam Das, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)/WaterAid, California, USA

Posted 9 June 2007

I am a Doctoral student in Urban Planning at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) working on water and sanitation issues in developing countries.

Providing environmentally-safe sanitation to millions of people is a significant challenge, especially in the world’s second most populated country. The task is doubly difficult in a country where the introduction of new technologies can challenge people’s traditions and beliefs.

“Experiences with Ecosan Systems to Provide Sustainable Sanitation for Schools in Kenya and India” written by Rahul Ingle, Christian Rieck and Elisabeth v. Münch published in 2009 by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) and Ecosan Services Foundation (ESF), paper describes the experiences and lessons learnt from using ecosan systems in some schools in Kenya and India.

The case study titled “Making nightsoil-based biogas plants viable in Maharashtra’s Pune district” has been written by Dr. S V Mapuskar in India Infrastructure Report, published in 2007 by United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). It presents Dehu village of Maharashtra’s Pune district, where some families allow their neighbours to use their toilets for a nominal maintenance charge making attached biogas plants economically viable. The strategy has also eased the village Panchayat’s responsibilities for human nightsoil management and reduced environmental pollution due to open defecation.

“Ecological Sanitation: Alternate systems to save water and reuse resources” has been written Sumita Ganguly and P Amudha in India Infrastructure Report, published in 2007 by United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). The case study presents about the two NGOs, SCOPE and MYRADA supported by UNICEF have brought ecological sanitation as a concept among rural families in Tiruchirapalli and Erode districts in Tamil Nadu through a process of discussion with Gram Panchayats and families.