Opportunities and barriers in scaling up of 24/7 urban water supply: the case of Karnataka, India

Abstract

Scaling up pilot projects providing continuous water supply to households in Indian cities has proved challenging. This study identifies opportunities and barriers in scaling up, in order to derive recommendations for bridging the gap between testing policy innovations and bringing projects to scale. We analyse pilot design, required resources, and drivers of stakeholders, institutions and the environment for a case study in Karnataka and find a wide range of factors that affect adoption of 24/7 water supply. Upscaling should be tailor-made for each area, which requires space, scope and capacity to be created for local involvement.