Abstract

The seriousness of the challenges associated with urban water supply and sanitation in India have been recognised in recent times. After decades of neglect, the first national effort to invest in the urban water and sanitation sector commenced in the 1970s, but was accorded considerable priority in the subsequent two decades as a part of different national- and state level schemes, culminating most recently in the ‘Swacch Bharat Mission’. As most of the recent reports and commentaries, have highlighted, the problems of the urban water and sanitation sector in India are complex and shall need concerted efforts to sustain the policy momentum. This paper attempts to highlight the multidimensional nature of the challenge, and sets out recommendations for strengthening existing policies and their implementation.