Assessment of India’s 15th Finance Commission recommended WASH sector grants through Rural Local Bodies

This paper documents allocation and utilisation of 15th Finance Commission Funds, across India, with special focus on the state of Odisha (particularly, four Gram Panchayats – Arjyapalli, Agastinuagaon, Kanamana, and Podapadar in Chhatrapur block of Ganjam district). The purpose of the paper is to document the experience of the 15th Finance Commission recommendations to tie 60% of grants to Rural Local Bodies for utilisation on Water and Sanitation, and provide recommendations for the 16th Finance Commission, based on that. Reviewing the budget allocations and expenditures for water and sanitation comes with the intent to learn and contribute to making services accessible and sustainable for all. Although a large portion of inter-governmental grants is earmarked for drinking water and sanitation, many Indian states are falling short of meeting this target in their actual spending. This paper builds on IRC's previous work on the experience of allocation and utilisation of 14th Finance Commission funds, submitted as recommendations for the 15th Finance Commission.