This book sheds light on the status of tribal communities in Central India with respect to livelihoods, agriculture, natural resources, economy, and migration. Written by noted academics, thematic experts, and activists, this first-of-its-kind report by the Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation brings together case studies, archival research, and exhaustive data on key facets of the lives of Adivasis, the various programs meant for their development, and the policy and systems challenges, to build a better understanding of the Adivasi predicament. This volume, Provides a broad overview of the contemporary macro-economic situation of Adivasi communities, with a special focus on the challenges of agriculture, land, energy, and water use, especially groundwater; Highlights the need to move into a new paradigm of agro-ecology based, nature-positive farming, and sustainable water use, driven by local institutions; Examines the neglect faced by tribal areas in the development of infrastructure in various dimensions, from irrigation to energy; Shares insights on the invisibility of tribal voices in the policy processes, and how political empowerment will enable socio-economic changes for the Adivasis at grassroot levels; Discusses the Adivasi informal sector and the state of migrant workers, whose plight drew national attention during the recent Covid pandemic. Companion to Tribal Development Report: Human Development and Governance, this book will be of great interest to scholars and researchers of indigenous studies, development studies, and South Asian studies.

Based on the work of the WASHCost project run by the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC), this book provides an evaluation of the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sectors in the context of developing countries and is the first systematic study of applying the life-cycle cost approach to assessing allocations. It presents unit cost estimates of the WASH sector across geographic locations and technologies, including rural and peri-urban areas, and these are compared with service levels. It analyses detailed data from more than 5000 households across nine agro-climatic zones in Andhra Pradesh State in India. Key issues assessed include poverty analysis of service levels, cost drivers and factors at the village and household level, and governance aspects such as transparency, accountability and value for money in relation to unit costs and service levels. This is the most comprehensive study of the WASH sector in India and elsewhere that utilises the life-cycle cost approach, along with GIS, econometric modelling and qualitative research methods. Not only does it contribute to research and methodology in this area, but the analysis also provides valuable insights for planners, policy makers and bi-lateral donors. The authors show how the methodology can also be applied in other developing country contexts.