Paresh Chhajed-Picha

I am a development sector researcher and practitioner with a keen interest in the development of small cities and villages. I am interested in the provision of basic services such as water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), public health, governance, public policy, public finance, social justice, livelihoods, and everything that contributes to their development. 

I am an architect and urban & regional planner by training and currently pursuing PhD from the Centre for Technical Alternatives for Rural Areas (CTARA), IIT-Bombay, India. The interdisciplinary coursework at CTARA has enabled me to appreciate the issues of rural and remote areas; issues related  to agriculture, water, nutrition, livelihoods, capacity, etc. My doctoral research attempts to analyse the developments in sanitation policy, the determinants that create an enabling environment for implementation at sub-national levels in India. I focus on deployment (or not) of faecal sludge management (FSM), an innovative solution for management of excreta in small cities. 

I was earlier associated with performance assessment system (PAS) Project (now C-WAS) at CEPT University  where I developed a 360-degree understanding of the supply side of delivering basic services in urban areas. It offered an opportunity to work with all the three levels of governments, and present work at various fora including constitutional bodies like the Union and state finance commissions. The work helped me appreciate how governance, public policy, municipal finance, and social aspects affect planning and delivery of services.

Earlier, I briefly worked on urban planning, environment, transportation, and housing sectors during internships. As an architect, I worked on realty and interior design projects  independently and with a small firm in and around my hometown. 

I believe that sustainable management of resources and services is key to avoiding and solving many problems of our world. Professionally, I hope to be an agent of change, create more agents of change, and contribute to improving systems. In my free time, I like to read, travel and click.  

• I am learning 

• I am patient 

• If I have an opinion, I speak

• I believe in Alvin Toffler’s words: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn”