India’s acute water and energy shortages are linked. As water tables drop, more energy is needed to pump water for irrigation and for municipal and industrial use. In fact, 70 percent of the cost of water delivery in India is for power. Inefficient distribution wastes energy for pumping and decreases the amount of available water. Meanwhile, poorly targeted subsidies discourage energy and water conservation.

USAID’s Water-Energy Nexus Activity (WENEXA) helps India address conservation issues that arise from water and energy’s interdependence. Working with the Indian Ministry of Power and local utility providers, WENEXA uses pilot programs to:

• Build an understanding of the water-energy nexus among policy makers, utility managers, farmers, urban industries and residential customers
• Act as a resource and catalyst for behavior change in water policy, distribution and use
• Introduce technologies and methodologies to industry professionals to improve distribution and decrease loss
• Foster efficient urban and rural water and energy usage
• Advance sustainable financing practices for utility providers
• Demonstrate approaches for making services commercially viable – decreasing public reliance on subsidies.

In Karnataka, WENEXA is working in collaboration with farmers, the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company and various other Government departments to demonstrate more efficient pump and irrigation systems. WENEXA’s work in Maharastra has led to the design of a waste-water recycling and reuse project for the Nagpur Municipal Corporation. Meanwhile in Andhra Pradesh, WENEXA works with a Government-led, multi-sector committee to implement the state’s Water, Land and Trees Act.