Business Guide | Israel-India 2022

W ewill beginwith the bad news: by 20 30 , UNICEF predicts that India’s water demand will exceed supply by two times, leading to severe water scarcity. The reason: steady depletion of groundwater basins resulting in a water supply shortfall of up to 50 %. According to federal think tank NITI Aayog, 21 major Indian cities are in immediate danger of running out of groundwater. Three-quarters of Indian districts, with a population of 638 million people, are considered future hotspots for water-related disasters. As it is today, 91 million arewithout access to safe drinking water, according to Water.Org, and 21 % of country’s diseases are water-related. Still, there are some known ways to reverse the trend and prevent the predicted crisis First, budgets: theglobal financinggap indealingwithwater is already estimated at $ 114 billion for SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) targets 6 . 1 and 6 . 2 alone. In the 2021 - 22 Budget, Indian Ministry of Finance allocated Rs 2 , 87 , 000 crore to theMinistry of Jal Shakti to launch the Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban) to ensure universal water supply to over 4 , 300 towns. Government is also committed to providing safe tap drinking water to every rural household by 2024 . Second, beyond drinking water: Agriculture is the main consumer of water stock in India: the irrigation sector was the highest water consuming sector, with a volume of 688 billion cubic meters in 2020 . In rural India, 80 - 90 % of drinking water needs are fulfilled by groundwater resources. Furthermore, Indian industry (i.e coal industry) makes use of water: Surface water ( 41 %), groundwater ( 35 %) snd municipal water ( 24 %). Almost 77 % of industries depend on easy availability of water for running their operations. Third, innovation: The growing need for freshwater resources is driving the demand for wastewater treatment technologies​. Hence, most industries have reported to have undertakenwastewater treatment and reuse in their companies. By now, the Indian water and wastewater treatment technology market was valued at over USD 2 , 100 million in 2021 , and is projected to grow annually by 8 % till 2027 . This market opportunity beckons foreign companies, mainly Israeli, as a global leaders in the field. Water pollution is another source of water stress, leading to collateral losses in healthcare. Cities are home to 36 per cent of India’s population but account for 70 per cent of water pollution, according to a report by the Central Pollution Control Board. Towards Clearer Co-Solutions Predicted Acute Water Scarcity - A crisis India will face soon. New Israeli technologies might make life easier and safer Israel-India > Business Guide > 2022 38 > Agriculture &Water > Review: Water-Tech