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Deserving poor in public sanitation: Tracing the policymaking processes of who gets what, when, how, and why in Delhi

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  • Tanushree Bhan

Abstract

This study investigates why sanitation outcomes vary across urban poor communities in Delhi, India. Unequal access to quality sanitation has serious implications for the health, dignity, and economic well-being of the poor and public health in general due to risks of environmental contamination. For this multiple-case study, a sample of 7 communities is drawn from slums, public housing, and homeless shelters. The database comprises of direct observations of sanitation outcomes in these communities, interviews with 67 key policy informants, official documents of relevant government agencies, newspaper articles, and court filings. The qualitative dataset is analyzed using process-tracing to uncover policy decisions across communities. Findings show that inequitable sanitation outcomes are manufactured by biases that blame the poor for service deficits and make the provision of entitled benefits contingent on political mobilization of exhibiting “good citizenship.†This has serious implications for democratic accountability between the government and the very citizens that are most in need of public services to meet their sanitation needs.

Suggested Citation

  • Tanushree Bhan, 2022. "Deserving poor in public sanitation: Tracing the policymaking processes of who gets what, when, how, and why in Delhi," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 49(8), pages 2151-2167, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envirb:v:49:y:2022:i:8:p:2151-2167
    DOI: 10.1177/23998083221089325
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Schneider, Anne & Ingram, Helen, 1993. "Social Construction of Target Populations: Implications for Politics and Policy," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 87(2), pages 334-347, June.
    2. COLIN McFARLANE, 2008. "Governing the Contaminated City: Infrastructure and Sanitation in Colonial and Post‐Colonial Bombay," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 415-435, June.
    3. Susan Engel, 2017. "Shame, Poverty and Development Studies," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(8), pages 1215-1226, November.
    4. Barrington, D.J. & Sridharan, S. & Shields, K.F. & Saunders, S.G. & Souter, R.T. & Bartram, J., 2017. "Sanitation marketing: A systematic review and theoretical critique using the capability approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 128-134.
    5. Susan Engel & Anggun Susilo, 2014. "Shaming and Sanitation in Indonesia: A Return to Colonial Public Health Practices?," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 45(1), pages 157-178, January.
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    Cited by:

    1. Johnson, Rebecca & Beach, Derek & Al-Janabi, Hareth, 2025. "How is process tracing applied in health research? A systematic scoping review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 366(C).

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