Policy push needed to boost India’s water reuse, says Veolia’s Anne Le Guennec

NITI Aayog, nearly 600 million Indians face high to extreme water stress, while industrial water demand is expected to double by 2030. Despite this, only 30–35% of wastewater generated in urban India is currently treated, and an even smaller fraction is reused.According to Le Guennec, encouraging industries to transition from freshwater dependence to treated wastewater could significantly ease pressure on freshwater resources.

Data from the Central Pollution Control Board shows that India generates over 75,000 million litres per day (MLD) of wastewater, but treatment capacity remains insufficient, creating a large untapped opportunity for reuse. Globally, countries like Israel reuse nearly 85–90% of their wastewater, compared to India’s estimated reuse rate of less than 30%, underlining the scope for improvement.She noted that water quality has improved over time, alongside significant enhancements in network infrastructure and connectivity.

"However, the fundamental problem right now that India has as a country is, we have 18% of the world population, whereas only 4% of the world's fresh water available is there in India. So, we are a significantly disadvantaged country from that aspect and that's the reason our dependency on surface water as well as underground water is very high," she added.She emphasized that India extracts groundwater at unsustainable rates, causing rapid depletion, and stressed that the most effective solution for the country now is to prioritize water reuse.Wastewater currently enters drains and surface water bodies, causing pollution, but it can be effectively treated and reused.