Bridging the Urban Services Divide for a More Prosperous and Sustainable 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 9.7 million in 2021. This influx of people has put a significant strain on the city’s infrastructure and services, leading to the emergence of large informal settlements that lack access to basic water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities.
Across Hyderabad’s informal communities, residents face a daily struggle to secure reliable, affordable, and safe WASH services. Many rely on shared or communal taps, wells, and pit latrines that are unsanitary and overcrowded. Others must purchase water from private vendors at exorbitant prices or resort to unsafe sources like contaminated ponds and streams. Inadequate sanitation also poses serious health risks, with untreated wastewater often discharged directly into the environment.
This urban services divide has cascading effects, trapping residents in a cycle of poor health, lost productivity, and limited economic opportunities. Children in these communities are especially vulnerable, suffering from water-borne diseases that undermine their cognitive development and educational attainment. The lack of WASH infrastructure also heightens the risks posed by climate change, with informal settlements frequently located in flood-prone areas.
To achieve a more equitable, prosperous, and sustainable Hyderabad, local authorities must take decisive action to bridge this urban services divide. By strengthening the capacity of municipal agencies and forging innovative partnerships, the city can expand access to WASH services in informal settlements while also improving citywide resilience and environmental outcomes. Drawing insights from the World Resources Report series, this article outlines a roadmap for transformative change in Hyderabad’s approach to WASH service delivery.
Prioritizing the Under-Served through Equitable Infrastructure Investment
A key priority for Hyderabad must be to ensure that infrastructure investment and service delivery decisions intentionally target the most under-served communities. Currently, the city’s water and sanitation utilities often focus their efforts on wealthier, formal neighborhoods, leaving informal settlements without adequate access.
To remedy this, Hyderabad should adopt a data-driven, equity-centered approach to infrastructure planning and budgeting. This starts with collecting comprehensive, spatially disaggregated data on the coverage, quality, and affordability of WASH services across the city. By mapping service gaps at the neighborhood level, the municipal government can pinpoint the communities with the greatest unmet needs and direct resources accordingly.
| Illustrative WASH Service Indicators for Hyderabad | Formal Neighborhoods | Informal Settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Percentage of households with access to piped water | 90% | 35% |
| Percentage of households with access to flush/pour-flush toilets | 85% | 12% |
| Average water consumption (liters per capita per day) | 135 | 45 |
| Percentage of wastewater safely treated | 70% | 5% |
Using this granular data, Hyderabad can then establish equity-based targets and budgeting processes to systematically address service gaps. For example, the city could commit to achieving universal access to safely managed water and sanitation services by 2030, with an explicit focus on elevating the most under-served communities first. This can be complemented by efforts to ensure that tariff structures and subsidy programs make WASH services affordable for low-income households.
Hyderabad should also embrace innovative technologies and service delivery models that can rapidly expand access in informal settlements. This might include piloting decentralized, community-managed water and sanitation systems, deploying pre-paid water meters, or leveraging mobile money platforms for bill payments. Collaborating with local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community-based organizations (CBOs) can help identify appropriate, context-specific solutions.
Strengthening Coordination and Partnerships for Integrated WASH Solutions
Achieving equitable WASH service delivery in Hyderabad will require coordinated action across multiple government agencies, as well as strategic partnerships with the private sector and civil society. Currently, the water, sanitation, and drainage functions are spread across different municipal departments, as well as the state-level water board – hindering integrated planning and implementation.
To address this fragmentation, Hyderabad should establish a dedicated WASH coordination body that brings together all the relevant stakeholders. This multi-stakeholder platform could be tasked with developing a comprehensive WASH strategy for the city, aligning investment priorities, and harmonizing policies and regulations. Crucially, it should also provide structured avenues for engagement with informal settlement residents, ensuring that their needs and perspectives shape the city’s WASH agenda.
Hyderabad can also leverage public-private-community partnerships to expand WASH services in underserved areas. For example, the city’s water utility could collaborate with local NGOs to operate and maintain decentralized water treatment plants in informal settlements, or partner with micro-entrepreneurs to deliver affordable fecal sludge management services. Such arrangements not only improve access but also build the capacity of community stakeholders.
At the state and national levels, Hyderabad should advocate for increased budgetary allocations and financing mechanisms dedicated to urban WASH infrastructure. Programs like the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) provide important funding sources, but their distribution often favors larger cities. Greater devolution of resources to local governments, coupled with flexible financing instruments, can empower cities like Hyderabad to address their unique WASH challenges.
Fostering Community Engagement and Co-Production of WASH Services
Meaningful community engagement is essential for ensuring that Hyderabad’s WASH interventions are responsive to the diverse needs and contexts of informal settlements. By actively involving residents in the planning, design, and management of services, the city can build trust, leverage local knowledge, and foster a sense of ownership.
One promising model is the Baan Mankong program in Bangkok, Thailand, which empowers slum communities to upgrade their own neighborhoods through a participatory, incremental process. A similar approach could be adapted in Hyderabad, providing residents with technical assistance, access to microcredit, and decision-making authority over WASH infrastructure investments. This co-production of services can lead to more sustainable and equitable outcomes.
Hyderabad should also explore ways to institutionalize community voices within its WASH governance structures. This could include reserving seats for informal settlement representatives on utility boards or establishing neighborhood-level WASH committees that interface directly with municipal agencies. Strengthening the capacity of local CBOs and empowering them as service delivery partners can further amplify community leadership.
Moreover, Hyderabad can leverage digital technologies to facilitate real-time feedback loops and enable residents to actively monitor service quality. Crowdsourcing platforms, SMS-based reporting systems, and community mapping exercises can provide valuable data to guide service improvements, while also building accountability.
Embedding Climate Resilience and Environmental Sustainability
As Hyderabad grapples with the urban services divide, it must also consider the interlinked challenges of climate change and environmental degradation. Informal settlements are often situated in low-lying, flood-prone areas, making them highly vulnerable to extreme weather events. Inadequate drainage and waste management systems compound these risks, leading to waterlogged neighborhoods and contaminated water bodies.
To build climate resilience, Hyderabad should prioritize WASH infrastructure investments that can withstand the impacts of floods, droughts, and other climate hazards. This may include designing decentralized, nature-based sanitation systems that can better handle variable water flows, or elevating water distribution networks to protect against inundation. The city should also integrate climate risk assessments into its WASH planning processes, ensuring that new projects are planned and built with future climate scenarios in mind.
Addressing environmental sustainability is equally critical. Hyderabad’s informal settlements typically lack access to sewerage networks, leading to the indiscriminate discharge of untreated wastewater. This not only contaminates local water bodies but also contributes to air pollution, soil degradation, and the spread of vector-borne diseases. Transitioning to citywide fecal sludge management systems, with equitable access for all communities, can help mitigate these environmental impacts.
Furthermore, Hyderabad should explore ways to leverage WASH service delivery as a catalyst for broader environmental protection. This might involve engaging informal settlement residents in waste segregation and recycling initiatives, or integrating urban gardening and urban forestry into community-managed water and sanitation projects. By aligning WASH with environmental sustainability, the city can create a virtuous cycle of improved public health, climate resilience, and ecological regeneration.
Conclusion: Unlocking Hyderabad’s Potential through Inclusive WASH Governance
Bridging the urban services divide in Hyderabad’s informal settlements is not only a moral imperative but also a strategic investment in the city’s long-term prosperity and sustainability. By strengthening the capacity of local government agencies, forging innovative partnerships, and empowering community stakeholders, Hyderabad can ensure equitable access to WASH services while also addressing interrelated challenges like climate change and environmental degradation.
The roadmap outlined in this article draws on the insights and lessons from the World Resources Report series, which has documented transformative approaches to urban service delivery in cities across the global South. While the specific context and challenges may differ, Hyderabad can learn from the successes and failures of other cities to chart its own path towards a more inclusive, resilient, and livable future.
Ultimately, tackling the urban services divide requires a fundamental shift in mindsets and practices – moving away from business-as-usual towards a people-centered, equity-driven model of urban governance. By elevating the needs of Hyderabad’s most marginalized communities and fostering collaborative, multi-stakeholder solutions, the city can unlock its full potential and become a shining example of what inclusive, sustainable development can achieve.
Mitlin et al., 2019; Satterthwaite et al., 2019.
Wee, 2018; WHO, 2012.
Venter et al., 2019; Gwilliam, 2002; Hook and Howe, 2005.
Das and King, 2019; Lwasa and Owens, 2018.
