Water Privatisation The Key To India’s Growth
Privvatising water is a contentious issue, but the fact remains it could prove beneficial to the country.
When the numbers are crunched, the current scenario as to the amount of water used by people is not sufficient. Take Nagpur for example, the city pumps 540 million litres of water a day, but only 140 million litres is accounted for. That is only about 26%. This clearly shows that the state is losing 400 million litres, which could have been incentivised.
According to the numbers calculated by VIL prove that privatisations of water not only made social sense but also business sense. In fact, if water is metered, tariffs will go down as many people begin paying.
But there remain concerns and all of them have no basis. One of them is that privatisation could lead to a supply shortage. In such a scenario, according to the naysayers is that private companies would only permit those with the highest fee. However, this may not happen as private firms, like VIL, would only be involved in making tap water connections available to all houses and metering them, while fees and tariffs would be decided by the concerned municipal body.
The issue of water privatisation has become a very political. Yet, VIL has not been deterred. This includes ventures into water distribution on a public-private-partnership (PPP) basis.
In the space, Nagpur 24x7, has remained the focal point through which similar projects the company will implement in cities like Magadi, Bidar, Basavakalyan, Shahabad and Yadgir in Karnataka. In the southern state, VIL plans to create 3.81 lakh water connections and lay 992 km of pipelines.
Once these projects get completed, more than 80,000 people will be able to drink water straight from their taps in these five cities, similarly seen in developed countries. The Nagpur-based company plans to overhaul the water distribution network in these cities.
A major way in which these projects can become successful is through communication with people and making them a part of the project. According to a World Bank report, a not-so-successful project occurs owing to a result of mishandling of the social side.
Arun Lakhani, chairman and director of VIL realises the need for clean drinking water is an urgent requirement, but with limited funds, towns are looking to set up more water projects. This, in turn such plans keep sewage projects on the hold. According to Mr Lakhani, this is leading to pumping out 38,000 million litres of sewage water daily without any sort of treatment.
VIL provides global solutions that contribute to sustainable development in the water sector through innovation in the design, construction and operation of drinking water treatment plants, distribution system reforms, etc. The Company has executed or in execution projects worth approximately Rs 27,500 million across the three sectors primarily through PPP contracting and few through EPC route.
When the numbers are crunched, the current scenario as to the amount of water used by people is not sufficient. Take Nagpur for example, the city pumps 540 million litres of water a day, but only 140 million litres is accounted for. That is only about 26%. This clearly shows that the state is losing 400 million litres, which could have been incentivised.
According to the numbers calculated by VIL prove that privatisations of water not only made social sense but also business sense. In fact, if water is metered, tariffs will go down as many people begin paying.
But there remain concerns and all of them have no basis. One of them is that privatisation could lead to a supply shortage. In such a scenario, according to the naysayers is that private companies would only permit those with the highest fee. However, this may not happen as private firms, like VIL, would only be involved in making tap water connections available to all houses and metering them, while fees and tariffs would be decided by the concerned municipal body.
The issue of water privatisation has become a very political. Yet, VIL has not been deterred. This includes ventures into water distribution on a public-private-partnership (PPP) basis.
In the space, Nagpur 24x7, has remained the focal point through which similar projects the company will implement in cities like Magadi, Bidar, Basavakalyan, Shahabad and Yadgir in Karnataka. In the southern state, VIL plans to create 3.81 lakh water connections and lay 992 km of pipelines.
Once these projects get completed, more than 80,000 people will be able to drink water straight from their taps in these five cities, similarly seen in developed countries. The Nagpur-based company plans to overhaul the water distribution network in these cities.
A major way in which these projects can become successful is through communication with people and making them a part of the project. According to a World Bank report, a not-so-successful project occurs owing to a result of mishandling of the social side.
Arun Lakhani, chairman and director of VIL realises the need for clean drinking water is an urgent requirement, but with limited funds, towns are looking to set up more water projects. This, in turn such plans keep sewage projects on the hold. According to Mr Lakhani, this is leading to pumping out 38,000 million litres of sewage water daily without any sort of treatment.
VIL provides global solutions that contribute to sustainable development in the water sector through innovation in the design, construction and operation of drinking water treatment plants, distribution system reforms, etc. The Company has executed or in execution projects worth approximately Rs 27,500 million across the three sectors primarily through PPP contracting and few through EPC route.
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