Policy makers in developing countries, including India, are increasingly sensitive to the links between spatial transformation and economic development. However, the empirical knowledge available on those links is most often insufficient to guide policy decisions. There is no shortage of case...

This study provides estimates of social and financial costs of environmental damage in India from three pollution damage categories: (i) urban air pollution; (ii) inadequate water supply, poor sanitation, and hygiene; and (iii) indoor air pollution. It also provides estimates based on three...

Cities in the developing world are witnessing unprecedented growth rates. It is expected that 70 percent of the global population will live in cities by 2050. In urban areas, as in rural areas, women and girls are often the primary users, providers, and managers of water in their household, and...

This report outlines the key principles of water safety planning for rural water supply in India. Water safety planning represents a change of emphasis from end-of-pipe testing to the management of risks of contamination from source to mouth. End-of-pipe testing is still necessary to verify that...

India being a vast and diverse country, we face many challenges in ensuring reliable, sustainable safe drinking water supply to rural households of the country. Though, in terms of provision of safe drinking water, we have covered more than 90 percent of the rural households, according to the...

The water and sanitation sector in Indian cities is characterized by weak accountability processes and lack of customer orientation. The institutional focus of service providers tends to be on creating new assets, rather than delivery of services and performance efficiency. Moreover, in the...

The effects of public investments aimed at directly improving children's health are theoretically ambiguous, since the outcomes also depend on indirect effects through parental inputs. The authors investigate the role of such inputs in influencing the incidence of child health gains from access...