In the last five decades, Indore, in Madhya Pradesh, has witnessed a substantial increase in urbanisation and industrialisation. Its population has also increased from 5,60,936 in 1971 to 2,167,447 in 2011 (Census 2011). This increase has resulted in an increased demand for water, aggravating the water crisis.
In 2012, Dr.Rahul Banerjee, a graduate from IIT in Civil Engineering and urban water expert, conducted a study on Indore's water supply and sanitation situation. He discovered that the current water supply model prescribed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) was unsustainable and also very costly. This model lifts water from the Narmada river, which is 50 kms away from town, and supplies it all over.
He argued that ADB and Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) did not properly explore cheap and sustainable alternatives such as reusing treated waste water, recharging groundwater, harvesting rain water and implementing the artificial recharge plan made by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) for Indore district using existing fractures in the ground.
In last 3 years, the financial burden of bringing water from the Narmada has escalated from Rs.110 crore in 2011 to Rs.180 crore in 2014. Out of this Rs.180 Crores, only Rs.50 Crores has been recovered so far from user’s charges and now Rs.130 crores burden has to be borne by the government.
The attached study has greater detail on these points and the interview with Rahul Banerjee also gives greater insight.