Water infra to attract ₹6.3 lakh-cr investment

With the announcement of the Nal se Jal scheme, the water and sanitation sector is likely to attract an investment of ₹6.3 lakh crore in the next five years. The government’s new scheme, which aims to provide piped water connection to every household by 2024, is likely to lead to a massive jump in investments in water and sanitation, said JM Financial Institutional in its recent report. The investments will be made in various verticals such as pipes, EPC, water treatment pumps, valves and cement. The study of sample projects in water and sanitation and interactions with water-related policy experts indicate that per capita investment spending could range around ₹8,000-9,000 for providing piped water access. This would amount to a spending of at least ₹5.6-6.3 trillion over FY20-25, and would almost be double the spending on water and sanitation over FY14-19. It further added that there are wide variations in the estimated investments across states, which will depend on the quantity and quality of available drinking water, geography and terrain. The cost varied from ₹18,000 in Uttarakhand to ₹3,000 in Karnataka. In addition, the eastern and central states would account for the bulk of investment in the piped drinking-water project, the report said. In the recent Budget, the Jal Shakti Ministry earmarked ₹28,261.59 crore for the scheme.