Page 17 - MHM Report-2023

TaTa WaTer Mission’s efforTs Mission in 2018 as it takes forward the concepts of
Tata Water Mission (TWM) aims to create a sanitation and hygiene and integrates them into
healthy and water secure future for underserved essential development aspects such as community
communities by providing access to safe, assured, health and reproductive health.
and adequate water and improved hygiene services The need for MHM-focused interventions
through sustainable approaches covering 42 stemmed from the feedback the Tata Trusts’
districts across 14 states. team received from women while implementing
In the last five years, the Tata Water Mission its extensive water and sanitation projects. The
has touched over four million lives in over 5,000 MHM component has been added to the Mission’s
villages of India. The Mission’s interventions project locations where the team felt that it was a
covered four core areas: necessary component of the sanitation and hygiene
 Improving water quality through affordable programmes.
and innovative technology interventions at the The MHM programme builds on the community
community and household levels, and advocacy networks and resources that have
 Ensuring access to water and promoting been created as part of the WaSH programmes.
conservation for improving delivery at the Through its existing programmes, Tata Water
household level, while promoting community Mission has covered extensive ground around:
institutions for ensuring the sustainability of  Creation and strengthening of community-
water systems, based organisations (self-help groups, pani
 Promoting improved sanitation and hygiene samitis, federations, etc.),
practices through behavioural change, and  Creation of behaviour change campaigns for
 Building institutions by enhancing the water management, sanitation and hygiene,
knowledge of communities to ensure  Engagement with government bodies (local
sustainability. and state) and other state-level partners for
However, it was felt that availability of water advocacy of behaviour change models.
can only be ensured by considering all aspects The MHM programme thus builds on the
of water in a holistic way during designing and in-roads that Tata Water Mission has already
implementation. This paved the way for the One established in various communities. The team
Water framework under the WaSH theme of Tata leverages existing community relationships
Water Mission. for implementation of a holistic, scalable and
The Tata Water Mission’s One Water sustainable MHM programme in key states.
philosophy is a community-centric approach to
make villages and communities self-reliant for their THe MensTrual HealTH & Hygiene
drinking, domestic, irrigation and ecology-related ManageMenT prograMMe
water needs. One Water will facilitate integrated The MHM programme of the Tata Trusts is
planning and implementation of Tata Water helping to deliver positive change across the value
Mission’s programmes to provide safe, assured and chain beliefs, behaviours, products and access.
adequate drinking water and improved sanitation The MHM programme was launched in 2018,
and hygiene facilities to underserved rural with pilot projects in two states — Uttarakhand
communities. and Rajasthan. Over time, the Trusts’ have
Menstrual health & hygiene management developed a multi-pronged approach to MHM
(MHM) was added as an integral component of the that addresses inter-connected issues such as

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