Handbook on technical options for on-site sanitation

Provision of adequate sanitation to all communities has been a major challenge in India. This is also due to the fact such communities have full spectrum of variations in sociocultural and economic conditions. It is said that in India near stone -age civilization coexists with atomic –age civilization. On one hand, there are Primitive Tribal Groups for whom sanitation is still not a felt need problem at all, on the other; there are communities whose sanitation condition is comparable to any community of a developed country. The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation is committed to help all such communities in rural areas in improving sanitation through its national flagship scheme of Total Sanitation Campaign. In addition, there is a wide range of hydro- geological conditions in different states in India. Selection of on-site sanitation technology should be as per the geological condition of the targeted area, to avoid ground water pollution risk out of on-site sanitation. It has been observed that due to lack of information many communities implement prototype technology of household sanitation even it may not suit the soil and hydrological conditions of the area. The Handbook has tried to provide sustainable technological options for on-site sanitation for different hydro-geological conditions.