| Project Detail |
The project will provide safe, sustainable, gender-responsive, and inclusive rural water supply and rural sanitation services for about 620,000 people in 10 districts of Himachal Pradesh. The project districts are Bilaspur, Chamba, Hamirpur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur, Solan, and Una. Using the sector loan modality, it will upgrade rural water schemes and introduce smart water management practices to ensure the effective management of new and rehabilitated water supply assets. Further, the project will pilot an inclusive sanitation program in Sirmaur District to ensure that fecal sludge is safely managed and treated before disposal. The aspirations of rural people are growing, leading to demands for service standards similar to those in urban areas, which support meeting basic human needs, good health, and sustainable environmental outcomes.
Project Name Himachal Pradesh Rural Drinking Water Improvement and Livelihood Project
Project Number 53067-005
Country / Economy India
Project Status Approved
Project Type / Modality of Assistance Loan
Source of Funding / Amount
Loan 4196-IND: Himachal Pradesh Rural Drinking Water Improvement and Livelihood Project
Ordinary capital resources US$ 96.30 million
Strategic Agendas Environmentally sustainable growth
Inclusive economic growth
Drivers of Change Gender Equity and Mainstreaming
Governance and capacity development
Knowledge solutions
Partnerships
Sector / Subsector
Agriculture, natural resources and rural development / Rural sanitation - Rural water policy, institutional and capacity development - Rural water supply services
Gender Equity and Mainstreaming Effective gender mainstreaming
Description The project will provide safe, sustainable, gender-responsive, and inclusive rural water supply and rural sanitation services for about 620,000 people in 10 districts of Himachal Pradesh. The project districts are Bilaspur, Chamba, Hamirpur, Kangra, Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur, Solan, and Una. Using the sector loan modality, it will upgrade rural water schemes and introduce smart water management practices to ensure the effective management of new and rehabilitated water supply assets. Further, the project will pilot an inclusive sanitation program in Sirmaur District to ensure that fecal sludge is safely managed and treated before disposal. The aspirations of rural people are growing, leading to demands for service standards similar to those in urban areas, which support meeting basic human needs, good health, and sustainable environmental outcomes. The project will strengthen institutional capacity in the executing and implementing agency, the Jal Shakti Vibhag (JSV), and in gram panchayats (local administration) to deliver efficient and sustainable services. Womens self-help groups in rural communities will be economically empowered through livelihood skills training, in particular training applicable to drinking water supply augmentation and the operation and maintenance (O&M) of village rural water supply schemes that provide opportunities to support rural livelihoods. The project will raise public awareness of the health benefits of improved water supply, sanitation, and hygiene practices to prevent the spread of disease, not least the coronavirus disease.
Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy
About 92.9% of the states rural population has access to drinking water from improved water sources. While this is almost double the national average of 49.1%, it lags the states urban coverage of 98.4%. The rural water supply infrastructure is old and in poor condition, rendering it either dysfunctional or resulting in services that are of poor quality. Both an asset management system and O&M funding are lacking. There is no water metering, and supply is typically intermittent (provided for only 6-8 hours per day), with consumption averaging a low 30 liters per capita per day. Small rural water supply schemes are located in remote and steep terrain, which limits data gathering to physical field inspections, and makes rural systems difficult to manage. The current monthly tariff is fixed at INR 34.54 per connection, which is far from sufficient for even O&M cost recovery. Low-cost recovery translates into a high dependence on subsidies from the government of Himachal Pradesh for O&M, let alone for system upgrades, and renewal.
Current data shows that 81.3% of rural households have access to improved sanitation facilities, slightly below the 85.0% of urban households. The primary onsite sanitation facilities include pit latrines and flush latrines connected to septic tanks, which discharge directly to the open environment and in open drains. A fecal sludge management facility exits only in Shimla, the state capital.
The government of Himachal Pradeshs JSV manages water supply, including construction and the delivery of bulk water to rural villages. Sanitation is provided by the Rural Development Department. Gram panchayats are involved in the planning, implementation, and management of village water services through village water and sanitation committees constituted by the states District Water and Sanitation Mission.
Impact Water and sanitation services in Himachal Pradesh sustainably managed
Project Outcome
Description of Outcome Safe, reliable, efficient, and sustainable drinking water and sanitation services provided in project districts
Progress Toward Outcome
Implementation Progress
Description of Project Outputs
Rural water supply and sanitation systems in project districts improved
Institutions and capacity of stakeholders for rural water supply and sanitation services strengthened
Status of Implementation Progress (Outputs, Activities, and Issues)
Geographical Location Himachal Pradesh |
