AKRSP
We decided to go with the latter so that Anurakshaks and panchayat functionaries could familiarise themselves with their ward-level water supply system, the extent of household tap water connections, and user fee collections. This aided in involving them in the overall process and making them proud of the change in the making. As the programme was implemented, it also had a positive impact on the communities by improving the water supply.
The survey was intentionally kept simple to enable Anurakshaks to fill out the survey forms with a minimum amount of handh o lding or training. When the survey was rolled out, digital tools were yet to be introduced, so the survey was carried out using physical forms. The forms were circulated to Anurakshaks through the GPsafter getting the instructions from the District Panchayati Raj Officer, Muzaffarpur. T he completed forms were then digitised by the AKRSP( I) team at each block.
The District Panchayati Raj Officer directed the three Block Panchayati Raj Officers and Block Development Officers to conduct this study and provide the necessary support to the GPs and wards, as well as the AKRSP(I) field staff. AKRSP(I) organised a day-long orientation at each of the blocks to appraise the block-level officials, namely; Block Panchayati Raj Officers, Block Development Officers, Technical Assistants, Panchayat Sachivs, and Executive Assistants about not just the survey, but the overall project to design a scalable model for sustainable O&M. This orientation helped to plan and roll-out the survey across more than 600 wards of the three blocks, and the survey could be completed in about 5-6 weeks.
Key findings from the dipstick survey
For the block-level functionaries, it has provided a view on the status of schemes and gaps that need to be filled and that may require some clear guidelines and protocols, e.g., completion of the 100% tap connections to households, fixing electricity connections, regularising or standardising the electricity billing, standardising O&M support through agencies, regularising payments to the Anurakshaks etc. For AKRSP(I), as the civil society organisation on the ground, it has helped to gain a better understanding of the wards in the pilot project, and the knowledge and capacity gaps that need to be addressed on the ground. This will be able to guide the intervention and activities that need to be planned.
If the same effort has to be scaled across the state through Anurakshaks or frontline workers, a few things come to mind that would have to be done differently. Based on the present experience, the survey form needs to be improved, and some instructions/notes for the surveyors need to be provided to strengthen the data coming in. The incentives for Anurakshaks to report the data more accurately would also need to be communicated better. At scale, it will also help to collect the data in a digital format from the beginning so as to monitor the progress across the state and screen the data in real-time with speed. The Anurakshaks will also need short training on the survey form as well as any digital tools deployed for data capture.
Authors
Pritesh Kumar Lal, Senior Programme Integrator - Monitoring and Evaluation, AKRSP(I)
Madhavi Purohit, Senior Programme Manager, Arghyam