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to develop the ability of “Turag Samity” to be able to both negotiate with DWASA and address other management
aspects.
Sanitation
In general, the sanitary disposal of excreta in the living environment improved significantly. The people in Bauniabad
were closely involved in the selection of an appropriate technology for their basic sanitation by comparing a
few locally available demonstration sanitation options. They chose the biogas system based on its cost, functional
merits and convenience in household connected sewerage system. The initial biogas facility used for research
showed about 70% BOD removal efficiency, and was cheaper than pit latrines or septic tanks in terms of per capita
costs. Another positive aspect of the system was that it had potentials for producing renewable energy, biogas,
which can be used for cooking. Majority of the families expressed their willingness to change their sanitation option
from pit latrines to the biogas based sewerage system in 1996-1999 period.
However, later it became clear that the systems did not function well in the treatment of wastewater mainly due to
(i) overloading of pollutants compared with the original design; (ii) lack of knowledge and practice about appropriate
maintenance of the systems; (iii) unexpectedly high inflow volume because of newly introduced piped water
systems; (iv) inactive activities of biogas committees that are supposed to manage the operation/maintenance
aspects of the system and (v) conflict of interest over use of the surface water bodies with growing fish farms and
other industries. In order to tackle these problems, the following further steps were suggested:
Quick survey on how the sanitation options are affecting the surrounding water bodies and examination of cost
sharing scopes among users and other local stakeholders for emergency activities;
Minimum water quality monitoring plan as quickly as possible and more complete monitoring plan later;
Capacity building of local technicians and laboratories to conduct accurate sampling and wastewater testing;
Training and involvement of the local community in the planning, implementing, monitoring and the operation and
maintenance of the system;
Research on possible scopes of renewable energy production and the reduction in green house-gas emissions;
Research and development of guidelines about the operation and maintenance of the biogas based sewerage
system; and
Development of new community cost sharing concept to include people and organizations who work in the area
and others who benefit from the installation of the system.
People’s Knowledge and Hygiene Practices
Water and sanitation (WS) educational intervention alone could not improve the WS related behavior of the people.
The lack of access to the appropriate WS technology options was also a contributing factor. However, during the
period of no regular/programmed educational intervention after the initial WS educational intervention period,
people became willing to share the cost for the improved WS technologies due to their acceptance of the technologies
as a result of their participation in recognizing the need for improved appropriate WS technologies.
Most of the women surveyed knew that drinking of polluted water caused diarrhea. They also knew that diarrhea
could be the cause of using an unhygienic latrine. However, when considering an appropriate hygienic option for
the disposal of human waste, they seemed to be more concerned about the dirty appearance of their living area
rather than being concerned about the possible health hazards. Hand washing practices were observed to be poor,
as most of the women surveyed were only washing one hand before eating.
Based on the hand washing practices that we observed and the information we ascertained from the focus groups,
it was evident that the women of Bauniabad were not aware of the need for the washing of both hands, or the use
of soap, to reduce the rate of transmission of fecal-oral pathogens into their food and water.
Overall, the hygiene practices were observed to be poor. The lack of practical and applicable knowledge probably
hampered the effective use of water for hygienic purposes. This may have been a result of the lack of dissemination
of knowledge relating to the importance of hygiene among the women of Bauniabad. It is also evident that there
is a strong need for the development of hygiene promotion methods. If such methods could be developed in a pilot
programme, it could greatly aid in the development of guidelines to improve hygiene practices.
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