Suchergebnisse

The relationship between gender and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) has been a widely accepted concern among academicians, activists, and social workers in India, but research and policies focusing on gender and sanitation often fail to address the issue of the intersectionality of identities. Analysing the complex intersection of caste, class, age and gender with water and sanitation in rural India extends new opportunities to explore the complex power dynamics prevalent in society. A focus group study with 54 female participants of seven discussions and in-depth interviews has been conducted in the Hardoi district of Uttar Pradesh to explore the social relations and differences in the physical world within the context of accessibility, affordability, and availability in the water and sanitation sector. Given gendered and other social divisions, we elaborate on how women play an essential role in water and sanitation management in the household. This study also offers evidence of rural women's experiences of intra-personal, household, and social harassment and violence related to poor or absence of sanitation and water infrastructure due to intersectional social dynamics. We also demonstrate how theorising about a single dimension of social difference ignores the different groups' access to power, leading to inequality and disparity.

'Culture' denotes the co-shared beliefs, values, ethos, norms, lifeworlds, and activities commonly represent nature-culture reciprocity. In several remote areas of India, folk culture still breaths within its age-old life world. Against this backdrop, the southwestern part of West Bengal, also known as 'Jangal Mahal' has been studied in the present research. In this area, approximately 40% of the population directly depends on indigenous sources of livelihood, and they belong to tribal communities like Mahato, Kurmi, Lodha, Santal, Bauri, and others. These native people are culturally distinct and are identified through their folksongs and dance forms, such as Tusu, Kirtan, Baul, Bhadu, and folk dances, such as Chhau, Khati, etc. However, urban spaces and citizens' choices for entertainment have brought about considerable changes in the culture and life of these people. Resultantly, with the increasing pace, deterioration in the heritage and culture of such groups seems to set in. Thus, this study highlights the changing scenarios of cultural crises, deteriorating heritage values, and placemaking. We have followed participatory methods, including field observation, interviews and group discussions. And a door-to-door survey was conducted in the 12 villages of four districts with a semi-structured survey schedule. Sixty troupes were selected for interview and Focused Group Discussions (FGDs). The findings show that values and cultural practices change over time, thereby losing their identity. The placemaking of popular culture results in a deep crisis in livelihood and lifestyle. People are slowly adopting other modes of earning, which further threaten their culture. This study aims to suggest suitable ameliorative measures to preserve the pristine cultural art forms and safeguard livelihood and skill sets.

Beginning with an overview of the distribution and utilization of healthcare facilities in developing countries, this book presents an in-depth investigation of the role they play in Mau district, India. It analyses primary data collected through a sample survey of 680 households selected from 31 villages and two urban centres of Mau district. It then moves on to discuss the conceptual and theoretical framework of healthcare facilities, throwing light on the variation in their availability, accessibility and affordability. The book then considers the distribution of healthcare facilities, focusing on their spatio-temporal change and rural-urban variations, before moving on to addressing the relationship between the socio-economic characteristics of inhabitants and their utilization pattern of healthcare facilities in the area studied.