Harvesting Hope

In January 2020, WaterAid India, as part of the collective impact initiative, Saamuhika Shakti, began the WASH for Health and Dignity of Waste Pickers project in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The aim is to ensure water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) for the waste pickers, who are mostly poor and marginalised and often overlooked in development plans of urban governments. According to the 2011 census, 31.16 per cent of India lives in urban areas of which more than half, that is 18 per cent, live in urban slums. The aspirations of this 18 per cent for a better life have been met only partially, as they continue to struggle for access to basic services such as clean drinking water and decent toilets. The rapidly increasing population of the urban slums is putting additional pressure on existing facilities. The situation in informal settlements, where jurisdictions overlap, is even more challenging. The local government bodies have made progress but have largely been unable to meet the urgent needs of people living in these areas. WaterAid, which helps marginalised and vulnerable communities gain access to WASH facilities, has worked extensively in urban slums of 11 cities across India. For this project, 15 urban slums were zeroed in on in Bengaluru, with a total of 5,000 waste pickers, their families, and community. The project's aim, due for completion in December 2023, is not just to give infrastructural support but also to promote collectives of the urban poor so that they can recognise their rights and negotiate their own needs with the government in the future – so that there is a change at the systemic level. Apart from the overarching aim of access to clean water and sanitation, the project has two sub-goals. The first is to collect evidence of the exclusion of the waste picker community from services related to WASH. This will help prioritize gaps and enhance impact. The second sub-goal is to make waste pickers aware about the importance of WASH in their lives so that they can assert their rights over these services. Compromised access to affordable and clean WASH infrastructure is not just a denial of their fundamental right to survival, but also adversely affects their meagre incomes due to increased exposure to diseases.