Urban Water and Waste Water

Increasing urbanization of India is putting significant pressure on the available water resources and the safe disposal of waste water. Most cities are facing water stress and are breaching the limits to access drinking water from ground water and rivers and water bodies.

Drinking water requirements of a growing city have to be met along with addressing critical aspects of adequacy and frequency of water supply, affordability and pricing, water quality and the institutional  sustainability of the water utilities.  A paradigm shift is needed in the urban water and waste water sector, to move away from supply side to demand management and reducing the waste water footprint of cities.  The large volume of waste water generated, if not treated, is a public health hazard and an environmental and bio diversity disaster.

Smart Cities Mission-Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs intends to launch ‘Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Sector Framework’ Strategy to help cities increase efficiency in the distribution and supply of drinking water and in the treatment and reuse of waste water. The Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Sector Framework Toolkit consists of four volumes: (i) Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Policy Framework; (ii) Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Policy Workbook; (iii) Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Best Practice Compendium, and (iv) Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Evaluation Metrics.

Urban Water Supply and Waste Water Sector Framework documents are intended to be used by city managers, municipal commissioners, CEOs of smart cities SPVs for development & integrated planning. These framework documents will help develop capacities of these officers to better understand this sector in terms of policy perspective, designing, financing, technology and overall development.

Your feedback and suggestions over draft consultation paper (access the document here) would be invaluable for us. We request you to provide your feedback/ suggestions/ recommendations on the framework toolkit, here, by 24 January 2019.