Urban community-led total sanitation

Opportunities, barriers and lessons from Nanded, India

Bibliographic Data

ID19219486
AuthorsLyla Mehta (0000-0001-5327-2964, Institute of Development Studies, corresponding author), Ruth Kennedy-Walker (0000-0003-2656-6371, World Bank), Apeksha Vohra, Tanvi Bhatkal (0000-0002-3835-2656, Institute of Development Studies), Pallavi Harshe (Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management), Veena Jadhav (Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management), Seema Kulkarni (0000-0002-2373-9065, Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management)
Year2026
Volume205
Pages107336-107336
Publication date2026-05-08
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueWorld Development (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0305-750X • E-ISSN: 1873-5991
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.worlddev.2026.107336
OpenAlexW7160644052
LanguageEN
References cited22

There is a strong interplay between caste, gender, class and the sanitation crisis in rapidly urbanising areas. • The worst affected are marginalised residents as well as sanitation workers and migrants. • Local action and communities alone cannot address problems of faecal sludge and wastewater management. • CLTS programmes need to address second and third generation challenges as well as sustainability and equity. • Safely managed sanitation needs to be a political priority in rapidly urbanising areas. This article focuses on the sanitation challenges of rapidly urbanizing localities in the global South by drawing on the case of Nanded city in Maharashtra, India. Nanded had a short-lived experiment with urban Community-led Total Sanitation (CLTS) between 2011 and 2012 and is today officially considered to be highly successful in urban sanitation according to India’s Clean India Mission. However, in reality many challenges remain, especially for its marginalised residents especially around sewage, waste and faecal sludge management (FSM) (considered to be second and third generation challenges). The article thus seeks to: (1) Trace the story of CLTS implementation, its successes, legacy and limitations; and (2) Examine urban sanitation challenges that are often missed in official programmes especially with respect to marginality, waste, co-production and community action. Through qualitative research methods and two phases of research, first in 2012 and then between 2022 and 2024, we explore past and current perceptions and experiences of diverse communities around sanitation, waste and CLTS. We argue that while there is strong potential for urban sanitation programmes inspired by CLTS to positively improve sanitation in urban areas, they need to recognise historical and current drivers of marginality around class, caste, gender and geography that continue to shape sanitation access and safety. The focus of urban sanitation programmes also need to go beyond toilets and behaviour change programmes, largely targeted at poor and marginalised residents, to also address waste and faecal sludge management problems which cannot be tackled at the community level. Finally, to systematically tackle second and third-generation sanitation challenges, community action must be accompanied by institutional change, state buy-in, investment and co-production engaging different actors, from state agencies to citizens and other stakeholders. The findings have relevance for everybody seeking to achieve safe and equitable urban sanitation for all in rapidly urbanising contexts

Developing country · Urban planning · Urbanization · Work (physics) · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Social and Economic Development in India · Water Governance and Infrastructure

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