About SPARC - Technical

BACKGROUND

S.P.A.R.C. stands for the Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers. It is a registered NGO whose main purpose is to develop and produce proactive, collective solutions for land security, safe housing, and basic infrastructure services to the urban poor of India.

In 1984, SPARC was founded to work with the pavement dwellers of Mumbai and now works in close partnership with National Slum Dweller’s Federation, which defend rights of urban poor, and Mihila Milan, which explore the current local situation and participate in the federation process.

SPARC helps survey settlements and produce an information database for these areas. Based on the data collected, they are able to better articulate demands to the state. The various data gathering processes are as follows: slum profile (access to amenities/services), hut numbering, mapping or plane table surveys, and household surveys. Once data is collected, the next steps are to start the households with a savings program and discuss plans for the area being considered.

The savings is a critical part of SPARC’s process because the practice and business of managing money is a means to creating strong and responsible communities. The households are managing their own financial resources. Also if SPARC decides that building a new housing complex or community toilet, the beneficiaries are required to pay for 12% of the costs (no small sum).

The savings process faces an array of challenges because the money is collected from poor women struggling to feed their families. Mihila Milan women help them on a daily basis by visiting each of their homes and collecting the money left over after their daily expenditure. The slum women are also trained to run savings and credit activities. In the future, these women will be entitled to take out loans for emergencies.

As one gets more involved in the planning of design and construction, the state politics must be addressed. The major issue seems to be getting the slum declared an “Official Slum” and learning who owns the land on which the slum dwellers are residing. Depending on if the land is public, private or government opens a whole new can of worms.

http://www.sparcindia.org/