Introduction

With 70 per cent of urban households relying on onsite sanitation systems for managing sanitation in Tamil Nadu, it is important that de-sludging services are safe, accessible and affordable to all households. Without adequately located disposal facilities, de sludging operators often resort to unsafe disposal of fecal sludge and septage into waterbodies or on agricultural land, that leads to environmental pollution and endangers public health. De-sludging services in Tamil Nadu entail a large number of partly regulated private de-sludging operators providing an on-demand service to a majority of households and establishments,supplemented in some areas by a state-run subsidised service. The Government of Tamil Nadu(GoTN) seeks to address these challenges througha regulated de-sludging model that is market-based with provisions for the urban poor. The model focuses on strengthening and regulating the existing on-demand services as opposed to introducing a new system of scheduled services. Its aim is to ensure safe sanitation along with enhanced accessibility and sustainability of services.The model is part of a larger Fecal Sludge Management (FSM) model under implementation by the GoTN. It includes setting up fecal sludge treatment plants, enabling co-treatment at existing treatment facilities, increasing access to treatment facilities using cluster approach, relying on public and private sector to deliver FSM services.