NEW DELHI: An analysis found that the Union water-sector allocations increased from 0.8 per cent of the total Union budget in 2001-02 to 2.2 per cent in 2025-26.
Across rural India, 464 million more people use safely managed drinking water today than in 2000, while rural household tap coverage has increased from 17 per cent in 2019 to over 80 per cent in 2026.
The analysis ‘From Gujarat to India: Water Lessons for the World’ launched at IIM Bangalore has prepared by former secretary of the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Government of India, Daniel W. Smith, assistant professor at George Mason University; Nitin Bassi, fellow at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).
The study documented the evolution of water governance in Gujarat and India between 2001 and 2026, its experience and lessons for policymakers and practitioners across the Global South.
The analysis underlined Gujarat's model of water conservation and its efficiency. Gujarat’s response combined the Narmada-based water grid with institutions such as WASMO and village-level Pani Samitis, alongside large-scale water conservation and groundwater recharge. By 2013, the state had constructed more than 76,000 check dams under the Sardar Patel water conservation programme.
The study traces how elements of this experience later informed national initiatives, including Jal Jeevan Mission, Jal Shakti Abhiyan, NamamiGange, Atal Bhujal Yojana, Per Drop More Crop, and AMRUT. In 2019, the creation of the Ministry of Jal Shakti provided a consolidated institutional framework for drinking water, sanitation and water-resource management.
Ensuring water for every citizen has been a priority for the government, said Ashok K. Meena, Secretary, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti.
“When water becomes a people’s mission, backed by strong institutions, steady investment, and Gram Panchayat ownership, change follows at scale. What began in one state has become a national commitment, and work will be relentless until safe, reliable water reaches every household in the country,” said Meena.
A central conclusion of the study is that water security is as much a governance challenge as an engineering challenge. Infrastructure must be underpinned by the 4Ps: political leadership, public financing, partnerships and people’s participation. The seeds of these lessons were sown in Gujarat starting in 2001 and then scaled up across the country under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership.
Daniel W. Smith, co-author and Assistant Professor at George Mason University, recognised India’s water journey and the model it created as an example for the Global South.
“The central message is that water security at scale requires strong water governance. Countries across the world can learn from these governance lessons and adapt them to their own circumstances as they work toward universal and sustainable water security,” said Smith.