Assessment of village health sanitation and nutrition committees of Chandigarh, India.

BACKGROUND: Village Health, Sanitation and Nutrition Committees (VHSNCs), one of the key interventions introduced by National Rural Health Mission, are an important mechanism to ensure community participation and ownership for decentralized health planning.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the implementation status of VHSNCs and analyze the issues regarding their implementation in the villages of Chandigarh.

METHODS: A cross-sectional mix method study was conducted in the year 2015 in all 22 VHSNCs of Chandigarh. The data of VHSNCs' members were obtained using interview schedule and in-depth interview checklist, while record review checklist was used to assess functioning of VHSNCs. A scoring sheet was developed based on sociodemographic profile, public services monitoring, training status, untied funds utilization, and regularity of monthly meetings. The comparison of VHSNC indicators was done between villages under Panchayat and Municipal Corporation (MC).

RESULTS: Most VHSNCs' members are trained (except medical officers) and had their joint bank account (95.4%). Maximum fund is utilized for administrative purposes, leaving less for health and nutrition-related activities. Most villages (68.9%) got 25-30 score depicting that implementation status of VHSNCs under these villages is "promising," while one and six villages were "low performing" and "good performing," respectively. Public service monitoring indicator's implementation was better in villages under Panchayat as compared to those under MC.

CONCLUSION: The performance of most villages having VHSNCs under Chandigarh was satisfactory. Few areas such as training of medical officers and supportive supervision of VHSNCs needs strengthening for achieving mandate of National Rural Health Mission regarding community ownership and decentralizing health sector.