India faces a severe water crisis with millions lacking access to safe drinking water. By 2030, 40% of India's population may be without access to drinking water due to overextraction of groundwater, water contamination, and poor maintenance. The government has launched various initiatives to achieve the goal of providing piped water to all rural households by 2024 such as the National Rural Drinking Water Program. Challenges include improving water source sustainability, quality, and service delivery. Strategies involve participatory water management, water safety plans, operation and maintenance, and strengthening decentralized governance.

1. "Future of Drinking Water Sector in India"
1.Introduction:
India is the one of the old civilization of World that have Water a part of culture. India holds
about 4% of global freshwater and 16% of its population & due to intensive urbanization &
agricultural practices the demand of water is increased by 22 % & 32 % by 2025 & 2050
respectively from the present level of 680 billion meters ( Bm3 ) . By sucking out nearly 260
cubic kms of water every year India contributed to 25 per cent of global groundwater used.
Groundwater is the source for 90% of rural India's drinking water needs, 75% of agrarian
needs and 50% of urban India's water needs.
India is facing the worst water crisis in its history in both Rural & Urban areas, and 21 Indian
cities will run out of groundwater by 2020,but Govt is determined to provide safe drinking
water to all citizens without discrimination.
STATUS of Water in India
Nearly 600 million Indians facing high-to-extreme water stress–where more than 40% of the
annually available surface water is used every year–and about 200,000 people dying every year
due to inadequate access to safe water ( Composite Water Management Index June, 2018 ).
21 Indian cities–including Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad–will run out of groundwater
by 2020, affecting 100 million people.
40% of India’s population will have no access to drinking water by 2030.
(Source: Composite Water Management Index, June 2018)
Nearly 70% of Water is Contaminated (Source: NITI Aayog)
80.91% of Fully Covered Habitation, 15.59 % Partial Covered Habitation,3.5 % Quality Covered
habitation, 44.88 % Pipe Water Supply (PWS)
(Source : NRDWP ( National Rural Drinking Water Programme )
If mitigation measures are not implemented, India faces a 6% loss in its gross domestic
product (GDP) by 2050 & it is being predicted India’s water future is till 2050.
So GoI is in action & have planned to
• Pipe Water for all by 2024
• Ensure that at least 90% of rural households are provided with piped water supply; at
least 80% of rural households have piped water supply with a household connection;

2. less than 10% use public taps and less than 10% use handpumps or other safe and
adequate private water source by 2022
• Provide enabling support and environment for all Panchayat Raj Institutions and local
communities to manage 100% of rural drinking water sources and systems.
2. Main Challenges:
• Source Sustainability: resulting from over-extraction of groundwater in large part due
to irrigation demand for agriculture
• Water Quality: problems including arsenic and fluoride contamination and
bacteriological contamination due to lack of sanitation which kills hundreds of children
every day from diarrhea
• poor operation and maintenance: including neglect of replacement and expansion
resulting in rapid deterioration in the quality of water services.
• inter-sector coordination & clearity about their roles & responsibilities
3.Strategy for Immediate Action:
Strategy Action Points
Enable Participatory Planning and
Implementation of Schemes and Source
Sustainability
a. Participatory Integrated Water Resource
Management at village, district and State levels
including Conjunctive Use of rainwater, groundwater
and surface water and provision of Bulk Water Supply as
needed
b. Water security planning and implementation by
ensuring cost-effective, optimal scheme design to
reduce O&M requirements
c. Water Source Sustainability measures including
Sustainability Plans implemented at block, watershed
and village level including Water Harvesting and
Groundwater Recharge measures
Water quality Management a.Source Protection with Water Safety Plan
implemented at village level to prevent contamination
before it happens
b. Monitoring, Surveillance and Testing through Water
Quality Testing including field test kits and district and
sub-divisional water quality testing laboratories
c. Treatment of water from contaminated sources with
cost-effective, appropriate technologies, safe
distribution and household hygiene
d. Legal, Institutional and Regulatory measures to make
water quality standards mandatory and enforceable in a
phased manner
Sustainable Service Delivery (Operation and
maintenance
a.Operation and Maintenance measures implemented
at village level to ensure skills and finance for operation
and maintenance, replacement, expansion and
modernisation.

3. b. Incentivise States to take measures for decentralising
functions, funds, functionaries using a Management
Devolution Index
c. Focus on metering, bulk and individual, to reduce
Unaccounted for Water
d. Service agreements for handpump mechanics and
piped water supply operators
Strengthen Decentralised Governance a.Institutional Roles and Responsibilities to support
water security planning and implementation (source
sustainability, water quality and O&M)
b.Convergence of different development programmes
c. Results Based Financing of drinking water security
plans d. Oversight and Regulation including value for
money and monitoring of progress and performance
Build Professional Capacity Training to capacitate new roles and responsibilities
b. Technical support
c. Outsourcing including handpump mechanics and
piped water supply operators
Mass Awareness Campaign a.Engage All state , District , block & Panchayat level
functionaries
b.Front line workers of concerned dept , to mobilize
community
4.Steps Taken for achieving this milestone
Natioal Rural Drinking
Water Programme : To
cover 90 % habitation by
2022
AMRUT: Launched in
2015 for Water Supply in
Urban Areas
National Water Quality
Sub Mission: Launched
on 22nd March, 17 for
27,544 Arsenic/ Fluoride
affected Rural Habittaion
ina Span of 4 Years
Swajal: Launched in Sep
2018 for 112 Aspirational
District & 27 State
Ministry of Jalshakti: To
Provide Pipe Water for
all by 2024

4. 5.Way Forward
Now Drinking water Sector in India is booming under the GoI visionary leadership for safe
drinking Water 24 x 7 by 2024 under one Umbrella “ Ministry of Jal Shakti “ by merging of
Ministries of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation along with Drinking
Water and Sanitation with Support of Piramal, Tata Trust, HUL, AKRSP, World Bank & UNICEF.
FOR FURTHER DETAILS :
ARVIND KUMAR
Jnu_arvind@rediffmail.com
8294814574