Bridging the Urban Services Divide in Hyderabad
The city of Hyderabad, India, has experienced rapid urbanization over the past few decades, with its population growing from 5.7 million in 2001 to over 9.5 million today. This explosive growth has put a tremendous strain on the city’s infrastructure and services, particularly in its sprawling slum settlements. An estimated 1.8 million people, or nearly a quarter of Hyderabad’s total population, currently reside in informal slum communities that lack access to basic amenities like clean water, sanitation, and reliable electricity.
“Our slum was built on a former garbage dump site. The drainage system is poor, and during the monsoon season, our homes get flooded with dirty water and waste. Getting clean drinking water is a daily struggle, and we have to buy it from private vendors at high prices.” – Reshma, resident of Balapur slum, Hyderabad
The stark divide between the haves and have-nots in Hyderabad is symptomatic of a deeper, systemic issue plaguing many rapidly growing cities in the global South. Unplanned urban expansion, limited public investment, and a lack of coordination between different government agencies have left the urban poor trapped in a vicious cycle of deprivation, poor health, and limited economic opportunities.
Recognizing the need for a more integrated, cross-sectoral approach, a coalition of local NGOs, community organizations, and forward-thinking government officials in Hyderabad have begun to experiment with new models of service delivery and urban governance. Their efforts provide valuable insights into how cities can bridge the urban services divide and put all residents on a path towards sustainable development.
Integrating Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) into Urban Planning and Environmental Management
One of the key barriers to improving WASH services in Hyderabad’s slums has been the siloed, sectoral approach traditionally taken by different government agencies. The Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) is responsible for providing piped water and sanitation infrastructure, while the Telangana State Pollution Control Board oversees environmental regulations and pollution control. However, these entities often work in isolation, with little coordination on shared challenges like managing urban water resources or upgrading informal settlements.
To address this, the NGO Watershed Organization Trust (WOTR) has been facilitating multi-stakeholder platforms that bring together urban planners, WASH service providers, and environmental regulators. These forums have enabled stakeholders to jointly map the city’s water bodies, identify pollution hotspots, and develop integrated strategies for improving WASH access and environmental protection in slum communities.
“By getting different government agencies to sit together and share data, we’ve been able to identify areas where investments in water and sanitation infrastructure could have the biggest impact on public health and the local environment,” explains Seema Kulkarni, WOTR’s Urban WASH coordinator. “It’s a more holistic, systems-based approach that recognizes the interconnections between urban planning, service delivery, and environmental management.”
One successful pilot project stemming from this collaboration was the upgrading of the Nallah, a major stormwater drain running through the heart of Hyderabad. The Nallah had become heavily polluted due to the discharge of untreated sewage and solid waste from surrounding slum settlements. WOTR worked with HMWSSB to install decentralized wastewater treatment systems along the Nallah, while also supporting community-led initiatives to maintain the drainage channels and prevent illegal dumping. This not only improved water quality but also reduced the risk of flooding and waterborne disease outbreaks in nearby slums.
“The Nallah project showed how cross-sectoral coordination and community engagement can deliver tangible improvements in both WASH services and environmental conditions,” says Kulkarni. “It’s a model we’re now looking to replicate in other parts of the city.”
Empowering Slum Residents as Co-Producers of Urban Services
Alongside efforts to foster institutional collaboration, Hyderabad’s NGO partners have been working directly with slum communities to strengthen their capacity as active participants in urban service delivery and environmental management.
One such initiative is the Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation’s program to promote decentralized, community-owned renewable energy systems in informal settlements. Through this program, residents of the Balapur slum formed an Energy User Group to collectively procure and manage a shared solar microgrid that now powers streetlights, community centers, and individual households.
“The solar microgrid has not only improved our access to clean, affordable electricity, but it’s also brought the community together,” says Reshma, the Balapur resident quoted earlier. “We hold regular meetings to discuss any technical issues or decide how to allocate the energy generated. It makes us feel empowered, like we have a real stake in improving our living conditions.”
Similar community-driven initiatives have emerged around water and sanitation. In the Hastinapuram slum, residents collaborated with the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) to construct decentralized wastewater treatment systems and maintain public toilet blocks. These community-managed facilities not only improved sanitation coverage but also generated employment opportunities for local youth as operators and cleaners.
“When slum residents are involved as active partners rather than passive recipients of services, it leads to more sustainable, contextually appropriate solutions,” notes Manju George, CSE’s Urban Water Program Manager. “The community’s ownership and ongoing maintenance of these WASH infrastructure projects is a testament to this approach.”
Mobilizing Finance and Accessing Land for Equitable Urban Development
A major challenge hindering more widespread improvements in Hyderabad’s slums has been the lack of dedicated funding streams and land tenure security. Conventional housing and infrastructure schemes often fail to reach the urban poor, who are perceived as “illegal” occupants despite having lived in informal settlements for generations.
To overcome these barriers, Hyderabad’s NGO partners have been exploring innovative financing mechanisms and land management strategies. For example, the Mahila Housing SEWA Trust (MHT) has worked with slum dwellers to pool their savings and access microcredit to construct affordable, resilient housing. MHT has also leveraged government housing subsidies and negotiated with local authorities to secure land titles for residents, providing a critical foundation for investing in home improvements and community infrastructure.
“Land tenure is key to unlocking investments in slum upgrading,” explains Bijal Brahmbhatt, Director of MHT. “When residents have secure rights to the land they occupy, they are more willing to contribute their own resources and partner with the government to upgrade their living conditions.”
In parallel, organizations like the Hyderabad Urban Lab (HUL) have been working with the municipal government to explore alternative land management approaches, such as land readjustment and community land trusts. These models enable the strategic redevelopment of underutilized or informally occupied land, generating serviced plots that can be allocated equitably to low-income residents.
“The key is to shift the narrative from ‘slum clearance’ to ‘slum upgrading’ – where we recognize the residents as legitimate stakeholders and work with them to co-create more inclusive, sustainable neighborhoods,” says HUL’s Researcher Swetha Rao Dhananka.
Strengthening Data, Monitoring, and Accountability
Underlying all of these cross-sectoral initiatives in Hyderabad is a concerted effort to improve data collection, knowledge sharing, and transparent governance. Organizations like WOTR, CSE, and HUL have been working with slum communities to map their living conditions, document service gaps, and monitor the performance of government programs.
“Good, granular data is essential for identifying priority areas of intervention, designing appropriate solutions, and holding authorities accountable,” says Kulkarni of WOTR. “We’ve seen how community-collected data can shed light on the realities on the ground and complement official statistics, which often underestimate the scale of deprivation in informal settlements.”
To facilitate data-driven decision-making, Hyderabad’s NGO partners have also fostered greater transparency and information sharing among government agencies. For instance, WOTR has helped establish a centralized, open-access GIS platform that integrates data on water resources, infrastructure assets, and socioeconomic indicators across the city.
“When different government departments can access and visualize the same data, it becomes easier to coordinate their planning and investment decisions,” explains Kulkarni. “It also empowers citizens to engage more meaningfully in urban governance processes.”
Scaling Up Transformative Change through Cross-City Learning
The experiences of Hyderabad’s NGO coalition offer valuable lessons for other rapidly urbanizing cities grappling with the challenge of providing equitable access to WASH services and sustainable development. While the specific context and challenges may differ, the core principles of cross-sectoral collaboration, community empowerment, innovative financing, and data-driven governance are widely applicable.
To facilitate the sharing of these insights, the Joint Action for Water (JAW) network has been actively supporting peer-to-peer exchange and capacity building across Indian cities. Through JAW’s knowledge-sharing platforms, urban practitioners from Hyderabad have connected with counterparts in Pune, Ahmedabad, and other cities to discuss replicable strategies for bridging the urban services divide.
“What we’ve seen in Hyderabad demonstrates that transformative change is possible, even in the face of complex, entrenched challenges,” says Kulkarni. “By working across disciplines and empowering marginalized communities, cities can chart a new course towards more sustainable, equitable development.”
As Hyderabad and other Indian cities continue to grow, maintaining this momentum for cross-sectoral collaboration and inclusive urban governance will be crucial. Only then can the urban poor break out of the vicious cycle of deprivation and unlock their full potential as co-creators of more livable, prosperous cities.
