Study on current community access to and practices on water, sanitation and hygiene in selected villages of Chargawa block, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract

Background: More than 90% of deaths from diarrhoea in under five children is caused by unsafe WASH practices. Adequate hygiene practices have been recognised to decrease the diarrhoeal incidence by 30–40 percent. 748 million people still depend on unimproved sources of drinking water almost a quarter of which depend on untreated surface water, and 2.5 billion people need to improve sanitation, including one billion who practice open defecation. Yet to date, the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) element has received minute attention and the potential to link efforts on WASH and NTDs has been mostly untouched. This study was planned to identify current levels of community access to and practices related to water, sanitation and hygiene facilities. Methods: Cross sectional survey of 200 households conducted in selected villages of chargawa block through multistage sampling. Data were collected using pre-designed questionnaire. Results: 66% of our responder’s were female, 86% of household are male-headed. The burden of collecting water is mostly with women & girls (89%). 51% of people still rely on the unprotected hand pump as a source of water for drinking. Majority of the population defecates in the bush/backyard/field (79%). Hand washing with soap and water during key times is practiced by 21% of the respondents, and hand washing with water only is practiced by 67%. Conclusions: The study shows that access to safe drinking water & WASH practices in the rural villages is still a big everyday challenge. This study provides baseline information’s for future interventions in this community.