Towns face interconnected challenges in wastewater management, solid waste disposal, faecal sludge management, public sanitation, and sanitation worker safety. Gaps in infrastructure, service delivery, public awareness, and institutional capacity can lead to pollution, unhealthy living conditions, and environmental degradation. Addressing these challenges in isolation is often ineffective. A holistic WASH approach is needed to develop a model town where sanitation services are inclusive, climate-resilient, efficiently managed, and environmentally sustainable.
Urban · Model town
Vedasandur model town
Tamil Nadu · Supported by Viega Foundation
We are grateful to Viega Foundation for their support of this Project.
Map
Basic info
- State
- Tamil Nadu
- District
- Dindigul
- Sub-district
- Vedasandur
- Town
- Vedasandur
- Importance of the town
- The town is an important transit location
- Urban local body
- Municipal Council (Nagar Palika/Parishad) · Class IV (population 10,000 to 19,999)
- Wards and households
- 15 wards · 4,594 households (last census)
- River
- Kodaganar river
- Residential water supply per person
- 73 litres per day
The initiative adopts an integrated approach covering the entire urban WASH system, from baseline assessments and GIS-based planning to infrastructure development, service improvements, and long-term governance. Key interventions include strengthening door-to-door waste collection, upgrading material recovery facilities, managing legacy waste, and promoting waste segregation; planning and implementing wastewater and faecal sludge treatment systems; improving community and public toilets; formalising desludging operators; and ensuring sanitation worker safety through protective equipment, training, and welfare support. Digital monitoring systems, climate-resilient designs, awareness campaigns, and capacity building for government officials, communities, and other stakeholders help ensure effective implementation and sustainable operations.
Your contribution can transform a town's fragmented sanitation services into an integrated, efficient, and sustainable WASH system. It can help reduce pollution, improve waste recovery, ensure safer sanitation services, protect sanitation workers, and provide cleaner public spaces for residents. By supporting both infrastructure and the systems needed to operate and maintain it, your funding can demonstrate a replicable model of town-wide WASH management. The goal is not just to build sanitation infrastructure, but to create a cleaner, healthier, climate-resilient town that other towns can learn from and replicate.
Projects 10 45 activities
1 Understanding current situation and gaps in WASH infrastructure and services Baseline Surveys and Data collection
- Baseline Surveys and Data collection
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- Baseline survey
- Topographical survey
- Household and institutional GIS mapping
- Wastewater, faecal sludge and water quality survey
- Climate-resilient design data collection, analysis and planning
- Digital dashboard for sanitation governance and monitoring
2 Planing and implementation of SWM infrastructure and services Solid Waste ManagementClimate-resilient WASH
- Solid Waste Management
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- Improve door-to-door collection through additional electric vehicles
- Procurement and repair of Electric Vehicles for Door to Door waste collection
- Procurement and repair of Electric Vehicles for Door to Door waste collection
- Upgrade Material Recovery Facility (MRF) - Installation of Plastic Shredder, Sorting Table and weighing Platform, Bailing Machine, etc.
- Optimise door-to-door waste collection routes
- Establish SOPs for SWM sanitation workers
- Climate-resilient WASH
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- Integrate climate resilient designs and SOPs into infrastructure & services proposed
3 Sustaining SWM services through regulations and Behaviour Change Solid Waste Management
- Solid Waste Management
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- Implement SWM regulations and differential tariffs
- Improve household segregation and eliminate littering/open burning
- Promote cloth bags and reduce single-use plastic
4 Planning and Piloting for wastewater infrastructure Faecal Sludge ManagementClimate-resilient WASHUsed Water Management
- Faecal Sludge Management
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- Prepare Detailed Project Report (DPRs) for new Faecal Sludge Treatment Plants and Used water managemnet treatmnet systems
- Climate-resilient WASH
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- Integrate climate resilient designs and SOPs into infrastructure & services proposed
- Used Water Management
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- Demonstrate decentralised community wastewater treatment
- Demonstrate household/community soakpits
5 Institutionalizing wastewater services delivery Faecal Sludge ManagementUsed Water Management
- Faecal Sludge Management
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- Formalise desludging operators through registration
- Establish affordable and viable desludging tariffs
- Promote periodic desludging and use of registered operators
- Used Water Management
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- Develop governance and operation model for wastewater treatment
- Implement UWM regulations and differential tariffs
6 Awareness and Capacity Building of Stakeholders IEC and DissiminationCapacity Building
- IEC and Dissimination
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- Workshop for Town Panchayat officials on sanitation solutions
- District workshop on UWM, SWM and FSM
- Disseminate Vedasandur solutions and lessons for scaling
- Capacity Building
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- Train local and district officials on sanitation system management/monitoring
- Train masons on toilet construction and scientific containment
- Train bulk waste generators
- Train community sanitation committees, eco-clubs and SHGs
7 Promoting toilet use and proper discharge of greywater Used Water ManagementCommunity & Public Toilets
- Used Water Management
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- Promote sanitary toilets and prevent waste/greywater discharge to drains and water bodies
- Community & Public Toilets
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- Promote no open defecation, no open urination and responsible toilet use
8 Add new CT/PTs or repair and refurbish to make them usable Community & Public ToiletsClimate-resilient WASH
- Community & Public Toilets
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- Repair/refurbish community and public toilets
- Improve signage and visibility of CT/PT facilities
- Construct new CT/PTs in underserved areas
- Climate-resilient WASH
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- Integrate climate resilient designs and SOPs into infrastructure & services proposed
9 Sustain O&M of CT/PTs Community & Public Toilets
- Community & Public Toilets
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- Restructure CT/PT operation and maintenance model
- Establish regulations and user fees for CT/PTs
10 Professionalizing sanitation workers Sanitation WorkersClimate-resilient WASH
- Sanitation Workers
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- Enumerate sanitation workers and link them to government welfare schemes
- Provide PPE and tools for sanitation worker safety
- Train sanitation workers on PPE use and job profiles
- Train desludging operators and Emergency Response Sanitation Unit
- Climate-resilient WASH
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- Integrate climate resilient PPE and SOPs into services proposed