Preparation of district human development reports - Kodagu and Kolar

The concept of human development has gathered considerable attention in recent years. It takes into account the socio- economic-political condition of people, their capabilities and the availability of choices for them to lead the lives they value. The UNDP initiated compilation of national and state level human development reports as ways of measuring, analysing and guiding development processes. The government of Karnataka has initiated the development of such reports at the district level to guide the process of decentralized planning, implemented majorly through the Zilla Panchayaths of the various districts.

These were micro-level studies undertaken to capture unique development related issues in limited geographic scope within the districts. These studies were new initiatives in the methodology for preparing human development reports, which was adopted based on the experience of preparing DHDRs of 4 districts in 2008. These studies were taken up as sample surveys and necessarily included primary data collection and documented development issues, programs and interventions that have a significant impact on the quality of human life. In the DHDR project, 5 small area studies were conducted in each district, which included a study on development issues of Dalits featuring a survey of 50 households in one Gram Panchayath in a backward taluk of the district.

The overall status of human development was high in Kodagu and the district ranked 3rd in Human Development in the state. However, the health status of Scheduled Tribes, especially the maternal and child health condition in the district was substantially lower and needed immediate attention. In Kolar district, the status of sanitation and groundwater over- exploitation across the district were issues of concern. Even with increased prioritization towards sanitation interventions in the state, only 9 (6%) of the 156 Gram Panchayaths of the district had been awarded “open defecation free” status in 2011. There was no Gram Panchayath in Srinivaspur taluk that qualified for this award.