Helping Indian cities choose sustainable solutions for used water treatment
In 2021, India’s used water treatment plant installed capacity only met 44 per cent of the country’s estimated used water generation, and only 38 per cent of these treatment plants were classified as compliant to the relevant pollution control standards for discharge.2 Non-treated used water finds its way to waterbodies, compromising water security and impacting waterbody health. The AMRUT 2.0 Mission aims to improve used water and sludge management across 500 cities and promote reuse with new used water collection, conveyance and treatment infrastructure.
Through stakeholder consultation and research, we identified opportunities to improve the selection of used water treatment solutions for different cities, so that investments in treatment systems are more likely to meet local needs, achieve their intended benefits, and be viable to maintain into the future.
A used water treatment plant (UWTP) treatment options tool was developed to help decision makers consider alternate fit for purpose treatment solutions for different scenarios, comparing the advantages and disadvantages of each option. The tool will enable Indian cities to invest in solutions appropriate for local conditions and priorities and helps facilitate discussion between stakeholders and decision makers. In the long term, it aims to improve treatment plant longevity and help cities direct investments towards impactful interventions to protect waterbodies and enable safe and reliable water circularity.
Educating water practitioners, protecting communities and the environment
Effective management, recycling, and reuse of used water are essential for achieving water circularity. It is crucial to understand key factors such as asset operating costs, asset lifespan, and the adequacy of water quality monitoring and public health protection measures in the production and supply of recycled water.
To build the capacity of senior government leaders and managers, field engineers, and operation staff at UWTPs, we developed the ‘Used Water Management – Planning, Design, Construction and O&M’ course to equip urban water practitioners on improved understanding of challenges and how to address these through water circular approaches.
The course provides foundational knowledge for city water practitioners to help them understand used water management, water contaminants and good practice frameworks for safe and reliable used water and recycled water management. To date, this learning course has been delivered to over 1,000 Indian bureaucrats and engineers working in used water management.
Rejuvenating India’s waterbodies
India’s waterbodies are integral for water security, urban greening and cooling, and for many cultural and religious practices fundamental to community wellbeing. Rejuvenating urban waterbody health is a highly visible community issue and a priority for The Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who launched the ‘Amrit Sarovar’ mission which aims to rejuvenate waterbodies and connect citizens to local waterbodies.
We produced an advisory framework to guide city actions for improving waterbody health, now published by MoHUA as a reference for urban local bodies under the AMRUT 2.0 Mission. A second advisory document focuses on nature-based treatment solutions, supporting practitioners in developing holistic, context-specific strategies for waterbody rejuvenation.
The guidance includes information on tools and techniques to address typical challenges and waterbody rejuvenation strategies with cost-effective solutions. Capacity building of cities in many states is currently under way to broaden their awareness of underlying pressures impacting waterbodies and how to manage them.
Delivering water circularity
Water circularity is the overarching theme of the AMRUT 2.0 Mission, which focuses on integrating used water into the city’s water portfolio and transforming UWTPs into resource recovery facilities. These facilities aim to recover water, energy and nutrients. The mission emphasises holistic urban water management to address the challenges posed by climate change and a growing population.
Efficient operation and maintenance (O&M) of UWTPs is critical for sustainable used water and recycled water management. This ensures the continual production of water that is fit for purpose for direct non-potable and indirect potable uses. To assist urban local bodies and parastatals in delivering used water services, we have prepared a model used water treatment plant O&M tender document.
This document provides guidance on key aspects of an O&M tender, including project scope, eligibility and qualification criteria, conditions of contract, procurement process, environment health and safety, asset management, and plant automation. It is designed to support water utilities in developing comprehensive, tailored tender documents that incorporate proactive asset maintenance, digital tool deployment, quality management and compliance for liquid and sludge management, staff training and capacity building, and resource and consumables optimisation. This guidance is expected to benefit over 500 urban local bodies.
Driving high-performance water recycling
The Jal Hi AMRIT (JHA) (water is nectar) programme is a key component of the AMRUT 2.0 reforms, offering performance-based incentives for states and union territories to efficiently operate and maintain UWTPs. The programme has a capital outlay of AUD $260 million in its current phase.
One of the primary objectives of the JHA programme is to enhance the recycling and reuse of treated used water. Various users, particularly industries, can significantly contribute to water circularity by utilising this treated water. Participating UWTPs are awarded clean water credits based on a star rating through a comprehensive evaluation process.
We led the design of a comprehensive framework to field assess existing UWTPs across 25 States and Union Territories, including strategy to transform these UWTPs in to a resource recovery facility, producing high quality recycled water for indirect potable reuse and biogas for energy production and therefore transitioning towards energy neutrality, while creating sustainable and climate resilient operations.
These incentive credits assigned through the programme are intended to improve the efficiency of UWTPs through treatment technology upgrades, the implementation of renewable energy generation, online monitoring, and capacity building. The first round of funding, amounting to approximately AUD $100 million, was released between March and May 2025 across more than ten states.
Empowering women in sustainable water management
MoHUA introduced a sub-scheme under AMRUT 2.0 called AMRUT Mitra (water friends) in February 2024. The scheme highlights the critical role of women as ‘water friends,’ emphasising their involvement in sustainable water management and community engagement.
AMRUT Mitra is a women-led initiative and is being implemented in partnership with the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) of MoHUA. It aims to boost women’s self-help group (SHG) socio-economic status while aligning with AMRUT 2.0, raising awareness and fostering community impact. The scheme is being implemented on a pilot basis, with AUD $27 million in funding to be allocated to approximately 1,500 projects selected on a first-come, first-serve basis. There are currently 582 approved projects funded with AUD $9.1 million across 25 states, with 236 SHGs onboarded.
We played a critical role in advancing AMRUT Mitra’s objectives in Haryana and Delhi, monitoring programme implementation, supporting city selection and engaging stakeholders to identify projects and SHGs.
1 https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/india/brief/world-water-day-2022-how-india-is-addressing-its-water-needs
2 https://cpcb.nic.in/status-of-stps/
