Rethinking Pricing the Priceless For Sustainability?

What is the real cost of natural resources in a country that holds them sacred yet treats them as limitless entitlements? In India, water has long occupied a spiritual and emotional place in our collective consciousness. It is revered, celebrated, and woven into rituals and daily life. But in today’s climate-stressed, densely populated, and rapidly urbanising India, the belief that water should be free is proving dangerously outdated.

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Paradoxically, even as millions pay exorbitantly for bottled or tanker-supplied water, the myth of “free water” persists. While access to water is a fundamental right implicitly protected under Article 21 of the Constitution—confusing rights with unpriced consumption has led to unsustainable use, environmental degradation, and deepening inequality.

Pricing natural resources such as water is not about commodifying nature. It’s about valuing it wisely. When resources are under-priced or freely available, they are often wasted or degraded. This is especially evident in India’s cities, where nearly 40% of treated water is lost through leaks, theft, or illegal diversions. According to the Economic Survey of Delhi 2023-24, over half the capital’s water never reaches consumers. In areas like Sangam Vihar, where piped supply is irregular or absent, residents pay as much as ₹2,500 for just 2,000 litres ten times the official rate. This black market thrives despite government efforts. Ironically, leaving the poorest to pay the most for unreliable and often unsafe water, highlighting how poorly managed subsidies can deepen both inequity and inefficiency.

In agriculture, the story is no different. This sector accounts for nearly 80% of India’s freshwater use, yet water is often provided at little to no cost. Free or subsidised canal and groundwater has led to rampant over-extraction, inefficient cropping patterns, and declining water tables. Recent studies by NITI Aayog and the Ministry of Jal Shakti suggest that introducing a modest water price of ₹2-₹5 per cubic metre could significantly reduce overuse, promote less water-intensive crops, and improve farmer incomes by up to 27%.

Assigning a rational, transparent price to water reflecting its scarcity, delivery cost, and ecological value—can incentivise conservation and efficiency. It can also fund the infrastructure we urgently need: leak-proof networks, water treatment plants, digital metering systems, and resilient storage. Water, like electricity and roads, requires long-term financing and proper maintenance. Yet despite the government collecting cesses like the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess, how much of that funding actually supports source sustainability remains unclear.

The goal is not to burden the poor but to ensure fairness. A tiered pricing system—subsidising basic needs while progressively charging higher users can promote both equity and responsibility. Seasonal tariffs, adjusted for local water availability, can encourage wise use without compromising access. Participatory governance, transparency, and targeted subsidies can make the system more inclusive and efficient.

The uncomfortable truth is this: water is already being priced, just not transparently. In cities and villages alike, informal markets and middlemen have stepped in to fill the gaps left by poorly managed subsidies and broken infrastructure. As India advances toward becoming a $1 trillion water economy by the early 2030s, water must be treated not just as a basic utility but as an ecosystem service. The question is no longer whether we should pay for water but whether we will value it enough to protect it for future generations.  It is no longer a question of denying access; it is a question of guaranteeing it sustainably, equitably, and transparently Water may be priceless, but it is not free. And in an age of climate uncertainty, treating it as such is no longer an option.

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