ANNOUNCEMENTS
India is dealing with a growing water shortage. The need for water is growing faster than supply due to factors including urbanization, population growth, and climate change, which is making water stress worse everywhere. However, fewer than 45% of the enormous amounts of municipal wastewater that are produced every day, roughly 72,000 million liters per day (MLD) are treated, and even less are recycled. A revolution from conventional, linear systems of water management to circular, sustainable, and resource-efficient approaches must be brought about to tackle the dual issues of water scarcity and environmental degradation. Reuse of treated wastewater is an essential strategy in this context to augment the availability of water, reduce dependency on freshwater resources, and reduce natural ecosystems' pollution loads. Focusing on four broad themes sewage generating patterns, treatment capacity, level of reuse, and the existence and enforcement of legislative frameworks this study compares wastewater reuse across Indian states and union territories. The goal of the study is to determine the current status of reuse practice, examine regional differences in policy, and how these practices differ from India's development and sustainability targets in the water sector. The research develops a state-wise comparative based on multiple secondary sources, including official statistics from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), NITI Aayog, and relevant policy documents.
To evaluate the overall scenario, quantitative mapping of the sewage and treatment data, content analysis of policy documents, and thematic interpretation by the conceptual frameworks of circular economy and Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) were included in the process. The analysis shows stark inter-state contrasts both in infrastructure and governance. States such as Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have brought out specific wastewater reuse policies and exhibit leading implementation models—Gujarat, for instance, has made treated wastewater mandatory for industrial purposes. In contrast, numerous states either do not have overarching reuse policies or are held back in implementation because of financial constraints, institutional fragmentation, and a lack of technical skills at the urban local body (ULB) level.
A number of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 13 (Climate Action), are also closely related to wastewater reuse in this dissertation. This corroborates the argument that treated wastewater cannot be regarded as merely a waste by-product but as a critical resource capable of contributing to making inclusive, water-secure, and climate-resilient society by situating the research within the broader context of sustainable development.
The report concludes with providing evidence-based recommendations for enhancing the wastewater reuse infrastructure in India. They include promoting decentralized treatment practices, including reuse planning in master plans at the municipal level, offering incentives for private sector participation, unifying monitoring systems, and promoting cooperation and information exchange between states.
