Hyderabad water board to supply recycled water to data centers
Private firm to share royalty from treated water supply fees
- Two PPP projects are planned for treated greywater supply.
- The corridors are Attapur-Chandan Valley and Nagole-Future City.
- The estimated demand by 2035 is 233 MLD and 290 MLD.
- Private partners will build and run the network under DBFOT.
- The projects are meant to protect freshwater and improve long-term water security.
Hyderabad is moving toward a more practical way of handling water, and the idea is both simple and urgent: use treated wastewater where drinking water is not needed. With freshwater pressure rising, the water board wants to build a system that sends recycled water to industries, data centres, offices, and other high-use hubs instead of letting it go unused.
The plan is significant because it ties water management to the city’s future growth. The two proposed PPP projects would connect sewage treatment plants at Attapur and Nagole to fast-growing corridors such as Chandan Valley and Future City. In plain terms, Hyderabad is trying to build a new water loop for the parts of the city that use the most water and can live with treated supply instead of potable water.
That matters for people living in a city where water stress is never far away. Every litre of drinking water saved for homes is a small relief in a place where weather, groundwater depletion, and expanding construction all compete for limited supply. Treated wastewater is not glamorous, but it is one of those quiet infrastructure ideas that can make daily life feel less fragile.
The numbers show how ambitious the plan is. By 2035, demand for treated water is projected at 233 MLD for the Attapur-Chandan Valley corridor and 290 MLD for the Nagole-Future City corridor. If the projects work, they could create a commercially viable recycled-water network while also reducing pressure on freshwater sources.
The revenue model is also important. Private firms would design, finance, build, operate, and maintain the pipelines and distribution systems, then charge consumers and share royalty with the board. That arrangement could make the plan financially sustainable instead of leaving it as a one-time public project. In a city growing as fast as Hyderabad, that kind of long-term structure may matter as much as the engineering itself.
There is also a human side to this story that goes beyond infrastructure. Water anxiety affects everyday routines in ways people often only notice when supply is interrupted — a clinic, a factory, a construction site, a hostel, a home. If recycled water can take pressure off the potable system, the benefit is not just technical. It is peace of mind.
The state’s proposed Wastewater Reuse Policy could make the shift stronger by giving industries and institutions a clear legal and regulatory path to adopt treated water. That kind of policy support is crucial because the pipes alone will not change behavior. Users need confidence that the supply is reliable, safe for non-potable use, and cheaper than wasting drinking water on tasks that do not need it.
Hyderabad already has a large treatment capacity, and this plan tries to turn that capacity into an actual resource instead of a hidden by-product. If the city gets it right, it may not just solve a water problem. It may set a model for how fast-growing Indian cities can treat wastewater as an asset rather than an afterthought.