Topic 2: The Crisis of Unsafe Drinking Water & Urban Governance

 

Syllabus Mapping

• GS Paper 2: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States; Issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure; Devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein.

• GS Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation (Water Pollution); Disaster Management.

 

Why in News?

A recent tragedy in Indore’s Bhagirathpura, where contaminated municipal water led to at around 10 deaths and over 200 hospitalizations, has exposed the "overlooked crisis" of unsafe drinking water in India's cities, challenging the narrative of "Clean Indore" (India's cleanest city).

Key Highlights

• The Incident & Pattern:

  • Indore: The outbreak was caused by sewage mixing with drinking water pipelines. Officials ignored warnings from residents for two months.

  • National Trend: Similar outbreaks have occurred recently in Mahisagar (Gujarat), Tiruvallur (Tamil Nadu), and Bhopal, indicating this is a systemic failure, not a localized lapse.

• The Scale of the Crisis:

  • Health Burden: India reports over 20 crore cases of water-borne diseases annually (Typhoid, Cholera, Hepatitis), leading to more than 50,000 recorded deaths.

  • Economic Cost: The illness cycle results in a loss of approx. 73 million working days annually, acting as a massive drag on labor productivity.

• Governance Gaps:

  • Siloed Infrastructure: Road agencies excavate without coordinating with water boards, damaging pipes. Sewage lines act as sources of contamination when water pressure drops in aging supply mains (some 120 years old in Indore).

  • Conflict of Interest: Municipal bodies act as the provider, tester, and judge of their own performance. There is no independent regulator to penalize failures.

  • AMRUT 2.0 Limitation: While the mission aims for "water secure" cities, implementation is skewed toward asset creation (laying new pipes) rather than service quality (fixing leaks and ensuring safety).

 

Critical Analysis:

• Significance:

  • Constitutional Failure: The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act mandated water supply and public health as municipal functions. Three decades later, local bodies still lack the financial and technical capacity to fulfill this vision.

  • Urban Inequality: The crisis disproportionately hits the poor (like in Bhagirathpura), who cannot afford RO purifiers or bottled water, reinforcing the poverty trap.

• Challenges:

  • Colonial Legacy: Many Indian cities still rely on pipelines laid in the colonial era or immediately after independence, which have outlived their utility and integrity.

  • Accountability Vacuum: As seen in Indore, state intervention often happens only after deaths occur. The "derisive response" of ministers to early warnings displays a lack of political will to address "invisible" environmental crises.

 

Value Addition (Data)

• Global Ranking: According to NITI Aayog’s Composite Water Management Index (CWMI) report, India ranks 120th out of 122 countries in the global Water Quality Index, with nearly 70% of its water being contaminated. The report estimates that inadequate access to safe water leads to ~2,00,000 deaths annually.

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Conclusion

The tragedy in Indore serves as a grim reminder that "Smart Cities" cannot be built on crumbling basic infrastructure. Ensuring water safety requires a shift from "coverage targets" to "quality assurance," necessitating the establishment of an independent water regulator to hold municipal bodies accountable, as envisioned under the broader goals of the 74th Amendment.