| Author | Gunasingam, Ramana Barathy |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no. HS-97-07 |
| Subject(s) | Municipal water supply--Sri Lanka--Ratnapura
|
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, School of Environment, Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Series Statement | Thesis ; no. HS-97-07 |
| Abstract | Plantation workers were brought from South India in the 1820s and were kept as 24
hours' captured labor on the plantations. Due to severe social welfare problems among the
work force, several social welfare facilities (SWFs) have been implemented over the latest
few decades. Water supply and sanitation are considered to be an effective entry point for the
socio economic development of the work force, but only the physical achievements of such
facilities have been evaluated. Assessing the effectiveness and relevance of the facilities and
the operation and maintenance of the water supply facility is very important, because they are
directly related to the socio economic development of the plantation population.
This study deals with the realization of the intended effects and impacts of the water
supply and sanitation facilities, workers' preference for various SWFs, workers' perceptions
of the imp01iance of water supply and sanitation facilities and their expectations from such
facilities, the adequacy of existing institutional arrangements for the sustained operation and
maintenance of the water supply facility, and the capacity of the community to participate in
the operation and maintenance of the provided water supply facility.
Physical specifications of the water supply facility were not fully adhered to, in
implementation. There was an increase in the quantity of water used for drinking, cooking and
sanitation after the supply, but this increase was not only due to the usage of supplied water.
There was only a slight change in the purposes of water use. There was not much difference in
the quality of the water used. Physical specifications of the sanitation facility were adhered to,
in implementation. Though the provided latrines were in use, regular usage was very much
dependent on the regularity of water supply.
There were reductions in the morbidity and infant and child mortality caused by water
and sanitation related diseases, but no connection with the water supply and sanitation
facilities could be substantiated. Most of the households felt that the cleanliness of the
household environment was the same as before because the line rooms are made of clay and
cowdung which do not require water for cleaning. A substantial number of households felt
that the cleanliness of the immediate and far environment was better due to the usage of
supplied water and provided latrines. The time saved by the women and children for
collecting water was used to attend to work and school on time. But the saved time was
generally low and was in addition irregular, as water was not supplied for bathing and
laundering and as the supply was irregular.
Water and sanitation were preferred facilities by the worker households. However the
importance which has generally been given to the provision of such facilities by providers of
SWF has not been correspondingly high. Moreover the studied facilities did not meet the
worker households' expectations relating to water supply and sanitation facilities. |
| Year | 1997 |
| Corresponding Series Added Entry | Asian Institute of Technology.--Thesis ; no. HS-97-07 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Human Settlement (HS) |
| Chairperson(s) | Dale, Reidar; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Routray, Jayant Kumar;Visvanathan, Chettiyappan; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Government of Norway; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1997 |