Q1. Could you start by giving us a brief overview of your professional background, particularly focusing on your expertise in the industry?

I have worked and gained experience in various roles within an organization, starting my career in customer service, product development, sales, marketing, product management, business strategy development, mergers and acquisitions, and business leadership. This helped me start new businesses, grow them within the company, turn them around, work out collaborations with overseas companies, and help the business grow. My sectoral domain is energy, both conventional and renewable, water, and wastewater.

I provide strategic inputs on the water business in India to some of the leading global management consultants who have used my insights to form strategies for water companies looking to enter the Indian market. I also advise cleantech startup companies with their business plans, growth strategies, and 'Go-to-Market' actions that help them focus on business growth, helping them with the business financials, and pitching them to prospective investors for investment.

 

Q2. Which segments within the Indian water sector are driving the highest demand for sustainable water reuse and efficiency solutions?

Industrial Sectors

The industrial sector, coupled with the rapid urbanisation of Indian cities, is the main driving factor for the Indian Water industry’s demand for sustainable water reuse and efficiency.  Besides these, Climate Change has been altering the water pattern and map of India, which has been forcing companies to create their own sustainable water sources to achieve freedom from traditional resources.  This is achieved through wastewater reuse, rainwater harvesting, and reducing water use in the main processes.

Manufacturing Sectors

In the manufacturing sector, industries such as food and beverages, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, textiles, and metallurgy are investing heavily in water reuse, recycling, and zero/minimal liquid discharge (ZLD/MLD) technologies to meet regulatory demands and achieve sustainability goals. These sectors face mounting pressure to comply with effluent discharge standards and address water scarcity, making them the top adopters of advanced water efficiency solutions.

Power generation, refineries, and fertilizers, being one of the largest users of water, are also implementing water recycling technologies to lower usage and improve operational sustainability.

It is heartening to see that most of the industries have implemented various innovative methods for water reuse, recycling, and conservation in their manufacturing activities.  This has brought down their specific water consumption by more than 40 percent over the last four years.

Rapid urbanisation of cities is leading to huge demand for drinking water supply, and yet, with limited supplies, civic bodies are struggling to meet demand.  Therefore, there is a significant push to adopt the reuse of sewage water for non-drinking water purposes, such as flushing, car washing, gardening, and cooling, to meet the rising demand for urban use.

 

Q3. What government initiatives and funding schemes support the expansion of water efficiency and recycling infrastructure, and how do they influence private investment flows?

Government initiatives and financial support primarily focus on improving water use efficiency, water distribution, sewage management, and rainwater harvesting in both urban and rural sectors.  Various finance schemes are available like:

AMRUT 2.0

AMRUT 2.0 (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) with an outlay of INR 2,77,000 crores that supports Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) to make water secure through improved water supply, sewage management, and storm water management.

Namami Gange

To stop pollution from industries and urban bodies along the main rivers, a flagship program called Namami Gange with an outlay of INR 22,000 crores under the National River Conservation Plan (NRCP) has been set up.  It supports the setting up of sewage treatment plants on all the tributaries of the Ganges and other major rivers under a Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) in all the states through which the river flows.

For industries, there is no government financial support, but it is supported through policy and tax rebates. 
Various national awards for water conservation, efficiency, water reuse, and innovation efforts from bodies like the Ministry of Jal Shakti, CII, Assocham, and others further help in the expansion of water efficiency efforts.

 

Q4. How are emerging technologies such as advanced membrane filtration, AI-driven water management systems, and IoT-enabled monitoring shaping water recycling adoption and operational efficiency in India?

In membrane filtration systems, Reverse Osmosis using spirally wound modules is commonly used.  Advanced technologies, such as Forward Osmosis and Plate or disc-type membranes, which are more efficient and cost-effective, are yet to find traction in the Indian market.  The general tendency of the Indian users is to use what is popular, and the appetite for adoption of new technologies is limited to a very small group of industries.  Engineering consultants, in their professed role of being a ‘neutral’ agency, do not specify any of the latest technologies.  As a result, all bidders complying with the tender conditions end up offering standard, old technologies, shutting out the opportunity to evaluate more efficient, modern products and innovations.  Pre-qualification clauses in public projects hinder the adoption of new technologies.  Besides, there is no financial support or advantage given to bidders or users for new technologies.  This is hampering the adoption of new technologies.

AI-driven water management and the adoption of IoT-enabled monitoring systems are being used in a very limited way in the water sector.  In some of the urban projects, an IoT-driven monitoring system and AI-driven analysis are implemented in a limited way for the detection of leakage and the prevention of NRW use.  However, AI-driven analysis in water management is not used the way it is now used in the electricity distribution system by most of the state utilities and dispatch centres.  One of the reasons, I think, is that the revenue generation from water and wastewater projects in the urban sector does not support investment in new and advanced technologies.

In the industrial sector, a few leading water treatment companies and industrial users are implementing IoT and AI-driven monitoring and management systems.  But these are in their very early stages of adoption and yet to proliferate into larger use by the industries.  In this regard, Thermax Limited has implemented an IoT-driven platform ‘Edge’ for water treatment plants and its energy products, and its customers benefit from optimised operations, lower cost, and predictive maintenance of its equipment.

 

Q5. How are leading Indian and multinational companies differentiating their offerings in the water recycling and treatment market to capture growing demand? Name the organizations.

There are two types of companies that serve the Indian water market:

A system integrator who offers the complete system, including engineering, procurement, construction, and operations
The others are inventors and designers of new products produced through research and development, and innovation.  The innovators do not have the capability and financial strength to deliver the complete system; they depend upon the system integrators (EPC companies) to provide the complete system to the end customers.

To offer differentiated offerings to customers, EPC companies often partner with OEMs and component manufacturers who offer their innovative products. The responsibility of integrating various types of technologies and innovations lies with the EPC companies as a single point of responsibility.  However, some companies are EPC companies that also develop new, differentiated products in-house through research and development.  Some of these companies are Vatech Wabag, Thermax Limited, Ion Exchange, Gradient, Veolia Water Technologies (erstwhile Veolia Water Technologies and Solutions, GE Water Technologies, and Suez Technologies).  

There are several mid-sized and small companies and startups that have developed new technologies and products, but unfortunately, they find it difficult to commercialize their products due to a lack of financial support and an ecosystem that supports such efforts.

 

Q6. How are startups and established players collaborating through partnerships or M&A to accelerate innovation and market penetration in water recycling technologies?

There are several start-ups in the water and wastewater industry, most of them addressing the IoT and water analytics solutions.  Others have developed innovative cost-effective solutions for wastewater treatment.  A few large and reputed companies, like Thermax Limited, have set up an ecosystem for collaborating with these companies to commercialize their products and help them penetrate the market through their own channels and customer connections.  Acquisitions of these companies have not been much heard of, but once the products or solutions gain acceptance, I am sure there will be opportunities for acquiring these companies.

 

Q7. If you were an investor looking at companies within the space, what critical question would you pose to their senior management?

While looking for companies for acquisition, I would like to ask the following critical questions to the senior management:

• What are the specific technologies owned, and solutions offered by the company?
• Does the company own any patents, or have they developed any unique products using current technologies?
• Do they do operation and maintenance of the plants supplied by them on a long-term contract?
• Which market segments do they operate in, and what is their revenue and growth from these sectors?
• What is the clientele base? Who are their customers?
• Their past five years’ financials.
• Their organizational structure and the quality of their manpower.
• What type of organization is it – is it owner-driven or professionally managed?