India’s strategy for providing 100 per cent household coverage with drinking water must be rooted in the principle of “more from less”. This entails not only delivering clean, potable water through taps, but also promoting the reuse of treated water for non-potable purposes. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is actively working towards benchmarking drinking water quality with initiatives such as “Drink from Tap”. At present, around 70 per cent of the urban population across 4,900 cities has access to drinking water. At the recent Indian Infrastructure Forum 2025, organised by India Infrastructure, D Thara, Additional Secretary (D) and (AMRUT), MoHUA, discussed the progress of government programmes, the importance of decentralised water harvesting and recycling measures, and the critical need for ramping up investments and private/community engagement in the sector. Edited excerpts…
Developments under government schemes
Noteworthy progress has been witnessed under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and the Swachh Bharat Mission towards enabling better access to drinking water and augmenting water/sewage treatment capacity. Approximately 10,000 million litres per day (mld) of sewage treatment capacity has already been sanctioned under these programmes. Under the AMRUT mission, the first phase (AMRUT 1.0) has achieved a significant milestone of 82-83 per cent household piped water coverage. However, projects worth Rs 770 billion under AMRUT 1.0 took nearly four to six years to get approvals. In contrast, AMRUT 2.0 has significantly accelerated implementation. Within just three years, projects worth Rs 1.6 trillion have been approved, with tenders issued and work initiated on Rs 1 trillion worth of projects. This reflects a strong improvement in state capabilities, and a more efficient and decentralised project execution framework under the second phase of AMRUT.
In fact, the total water treatment capacity is projected to increase from 22,000 mld to nearly 26,000-28,000 mld with infrastructure upgrades under AMRUT. The focus is not only on treatment but also on regulated and accountable reuse, reinforcing the principle that no water should go to waste. In line with this, the concept of non-revenue water requires contextual adaptation. In India, water supply has never been a significant revenue stream in most cities. Therefore, rather than focusing on revenue loss, we must shift our attention to “non-productive water”, addressing leakages and seepages that result in actual wastage. This will require targeted interventions to reduce losses and improve reuse.
In order to address the gaps in the water infrastructure, the Jal Hi Amrit initiative was launched. This initiative encourages urban local bodies (ULBs) to first conduct self-assessments of their sewage treatment plants (STPs) based on key parameters such as biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, and ammonia, nitrogen and phosphorus levels. Based on this, they receive a preliminary star rating. A third-party assessor then validates their performance, identifies gaps and supports the development of a tailored capacity-building plan. The ULBs are then expected to improve the STPs within six months. Marking steady progress, around 880 STPs have registered to date under the scheme.
Shift towards decentralised rainwater harvesting systems
India must move towards becoming a nation of water-producing homes, with rainwater harvesting playing a central role in achieving urban water security. The vision of transforming city drains from black to blue aligns with broader goals of sustainability and resilience. However, there is a need to rethink the current models to make rainwater harvesting truly effective. Individual household systems often lack scientific rigour and impact, and cannot be relied on solely. Instead, community-owned rainwater harvesting infrastructure that takes advantage of urban density must be promoted. Shared systems that connect multiple rooftops through a unified pipe network can optimise collection and storage, even in space-constrained environments.
“Rather than focusing on revenue loss, we must shift our attention to ‘non-productive water’.”
The challenge with rainwater harvesting lies not just in implementation, but in management and accountability as well. Unlike drinking water systems, for which strong monitoring frameworks exist, harvested rainwater often remains unmeasured and underutilised. Bridging the gap between private and public infrastructure through the creation of semi-public assets is key. To achieve this, community-level storage systems linked to local wards or district metered areas can collect roof runoff during regular rain and reduce urban flooding. At the household level, design thinking must evolve. Instead of paving entire plots and sloping them towards roads, homes should adopt permeable surfaces and slight depressions to retain rainwater on-site. Drawing inspiration from global practices, such as Germany’s use of sunken green spaces for temporary water storage, Indian urban planning must integrate nature-based solutions into built environments.
Recycle and reuse efforts
India must strive to become the world’s largest recycler, whether of water, solid waste or other resources. With reuse being a key component of the AMRUT mandate, the focus on resource recovery is growing. A key goal for 2030 under the programme is to ensure governed reuse of at least 10,000 mld of treated water. This emphasis is being reinforced through strategic tie-ups with various industrial entities. States are being encouraged to lead this push, and cities such as Nagpur, Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad, Surat and Ahmedabad have established systems to supply treated water to thermal power plants. Chennai has also developed industrial wastewater treatment infrastructure under AMRUT. Similarly, Gandhidham municipality has been successful in supplying their used water/sewage to private companies and industries for treatment and reuse. However, these initiatives remain fragmented and need to be scaled up.
Furthermore, industries such as leather and apparel are particularly water-intensive, with significant treatment challenges, especially related to dye removal. Technologies such as the adsorption method developed by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, which costs only 4 paise per litre, offer promising solutions. These technologies must be popularised to maximise impact, and a targeted approach that assesses sector-specific water demand and promotes scientific water management tailored to each industry’s needs must be adopted.
Moving ahead, it must be ensured that at least 80 per cent of used water is treated and reused – if not by 2030, then certainly by 2035. Achieving this requires transforming urban water infrastructure into dual-pipeline systems, one for potable water and another for treated, non-potable reuse. Such a system would drastically reduce daily freshwater demand, ensuring that only 30 per cent of the current volume is needed for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene. The rest must be sustainably managed through high-quality treatment and reuse, aligning with the broader national vision of long-term water security.
Pertinent future growth requirements
Going forward, India’s urban infrastructure requires substantial investment, with around Rs 7-8 trillion for water systems and Rs 3-4 trillion for solid waste management. Funding of this scale cannot be achieved through government resources alone. To bridge the gap, it is essential to bring in private players who can contribute, execute projects efficiently and exit with returns. To this end, the government has announced an Urban Challenge Fund of Rs 1 trillion, aiming to leverage an additional Rs 3 trillion over the next five years. Under this model, 25 per cent of the funding will come from the centre, 50 per cent is to be raised from the market and the remaining 25 per cent from state governments. Alternatively, states may choose to raise up to 75 per cent from the market. This framework is based on a shared payment mechanism that will ensure investor confidence and balanced risk-sharing.
Equally important is the need to bring more people into the management and maintenance of water infrastructure. Currently, around 10,000 women serve as AMRUT Mitras, supporting operations. The goal is to expand this number to at least 100,000. This will not only strengthen community ownership but also enhance transparency and accountability. While their initial roles may be basic, many self-help groups are already successfully managing FSTPs and STPs. When more stakeholders participate, it prevents operations from being neglected, fostering ongoing dialogue, vigilance and improvement in service delivery.
The need of the hour is to prioritise sustaining what we have built. Building infrastructure is often the easiest part, with contractors, funding and monitoring in place, but the real challenge lies in maintaining it, especially sewage treatment systems. Unlike drinking water supply, which benefits from daily accountability, sewage systems require a shift from a reactive to a proactive mode of upkeep. To make this a regular and integral part of the system, we need data sharing, fundamental changes and performance-based incentives. This ensures accountability by linking responsibilities to financial outcomes. Ultimately, there is a larger vision of having blue waterways across Indian cities, replacing the current black drains. The process for achieving this is tedious but extremely important.
“India must move towards becoming a nation of water-producing homes, with rainwater harvesting playing a central role in achieving urban water security.”