Household choices of sanitation infrastructure and impact on disease in India

Abstract

In the recent past, there has been a substantial push to increase the sanitation infrastructure in India to end open defecation and improve level of hygiene. The choice of the type of sanitation, however, depends on demographic, socio-economic, tenurial, cultural and sanitation surroundings, which not only impacts sanitation practices but also incidences of diseases. This paper empirically analyses the determinants of households’ choice of toilet facility and the relation between incidence of diseases and sanitation using National Sample Survey Office’s 76th round of the survey for 2018-19. The results indicate that the social, economic and cultural factors have significant impact on the households’ choices of a toilet. There is a preference for flush type toilets connected to a sewer among households with better socio-economic status. This research finds that the quality of microenvironment within which a household lives has a significant impact on the incidence of disease. The results imply that the interventions for improved sanitation need to be holistic, emphasising microenvironment improvement and providing better access to sanitation infrastructure and inculcating more hygienic behavioural practices.

Water and sanitation services in India and Ghana: an assessment of implications for rural health and related SDGs

“…A relationship between access to water and household toilet ownership has also been established. Hirai et al (2018) note that where households have access to water, they are more likely to build their own toilets as water is essential to run toilets (Tiwari et al, 2022). This review shows that even though access to water has improved in both India and Ghana, the rural areas in these countries rely on public water points (non-pipe) for household purposes, whereas the urban areas rely mainly on pipe systems for their domestic consumption.…”

“…This review has further highlighted how socioeconomic conditions influence peoples' choices of water and sanitation services. Hirai et al (2018) note that factors such as literacy levels, income levels, number of children aged under 5 years, and social classification of households play a key role in determining household choices of sanitation services (Tiwari et al, 2022). This is because, increased household income makes it possible for households to build their own toilets, as the high cost of construction acts as one of the impeding factors of household toilet ownership (Sara & Graham, 2014).…”

Utilization of improved sanitation facilities: Does socioeconomic inequality still persist in India?

“…Alongside economic factors, social status such as caste and religion signi cantly in uence sanitary behaviour [17,18]. Notably, wide rural-urban differential and regional disparities (State-wise) still exist in the utilization of improved sanitation [12,19,20]. Currently, around 70% of rural households, as against only about 19% of urban households lack of improved sanitation facilities within premises [20].…”