“Interaction between water related informal processes and water management: the example of Hyderabad, India” Von der Fakultät für Georessourcen und Materialtechnik der Rheinisch -Westfälischen Technischen Hochschule Aachen zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades eines Doktors der Naturwissenschaften genehmigte Dissertation vorgelegt von M.A. Kilian Alexander Christ aus Heidenheim Berichter: Univ.-Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Dr. h. c. (USST) Rafig Azzam Univ.-Prof. Dr. phil. Martina Fromhold-Eisebith Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 19. Februar 2015 Diese Dissertation ist auf den Internetseiten der Hochschulbibliothek online verfügbar. Table of Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 4 List of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... 5 List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................... 7 List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 1: Introduction .................................................................................................................... 11 1.1 Subject and Approach ............................................................................................................... 11 1.2 Linking Informality and Sustainability ..................................................................................... 11 CHAPTER 2: Informality and Water – A Conceptual Framework ....................................................... 15 2.1 Literature Review ..................................................................................................................... 15 2.1.1 Theoretical Framework – The Schools of Thought ................................................... 15 2.1.2 Informality as a Universal Aspect of the Economy ................................................... 17 2.1.3 The Formal-Informal Continuum .............................................................................. 19 2.1.4 Current Literature on Informality and Water ............................................................ 21 2.1.5 Water and the Formal Regulatory Environment in India .......................................... 22 2.2 Method ...................................................................................................................................... 28 2.2.1 Research Questions ................................................................................................... 28 2.2.2 Study Design and Data Collection............................................................................. 30 2.2.3 Accessing the Research Areas ................................................................................... 32 2.2.4 Limitations of the Study ............................................................................................ 34 2.3 Chapter Outline ........................................................................................................................ 35 CHAPTER 3: The City, Informality and Water .................................................................................... 37 3.1 India – The National Context ................................................................................................... 37 3.2 The Deccan – Natural Setting and Geophysical Features......................................................... 38 3.3 Hyderabad – History and Urban Development ........................................................................ 39 3.4 Administration .......................................................................................................................... 42 3.5 The Local Informal Economy ................................................................................................... 43 3.6 The Issue of Slums and Informal Settlements .......................................................................... 45 3.6.1 Slums ......................................................................................................................... 45 3.6.2 Squatter Settlements .................................................................................................. 47 1 3.6.3 Middle- and Upper Class Colonies ............................................................................ 48 3.6.4 Informal Settlements in Hyderabad ........................................................................... 49 3.7 Water Management................................................................................................................... 50 3.7.1 Demand, Supply and Distribution ............................................................................. 50 3.7.2 Sewage System and Waste Water Treatment ............................................................ 55 3.7.3 The Lakes of Hyderabad ........................................................................................... 57 CHAPTER 4: Urban Informality and Water Management ................................................................... 61 4.1 Fragmented Access – The Nature of Water Supply in Hyderabad ........................................... 61 4.1.1 Housing ..................................................................................................................... 61 4.1.2 Statistical Data Evaluation of the Process “Housing” ............................................... 73 4.1.3 Own Account Workers .............................................................................................. 78 4.1.4 The “Unorganized Sector” ........................................................................................ 85 4.1.5 Industries ................................................................................................................... 87 4.2 Lack of Regulation - Sanitation in Hyderabad ......................................................................... 89 4.2.1 Solid Waste Management in Hyderabad ................................................................... 90 4.2.2 Housing ..................................................................................................................... 92 4.2.3 Own Account Workers .............................................................................................. 94 4.2.4 The “Unorganized Sector” ........................................................................................ 95 4.2.5 Industries ................................................................................................................... 96 CHAPTER 5: The Impact of Inadequate Services and Water Pollution: People, Processes and the Environment .......................................................................................................................................... 98 5.1 Impact on People and Productivity ........................................................................................... 98 5.1.1 The 2009 Cholera Outbreak in Bholakpur ................................................................ 98 5.1.2 Quality of Water Supply .......................................................................................... 100 5.1.3 Informal Water Markets .......................................................................................... 105 5.1.4 Vulnerability to Floods ............................................................................................ 107 5.1.5 The “Informal Sector” ............................................................................................. 109 5.2 Environmental Impact of Informal Processes......................................................................... 112 5.2.1 Groundwater Extraction .......................................................................................... 112 5.2.2 Water Pollution by Informal Processes ................................................................... 114 5.2.3 Solid Waste Management ........................................................................................ 123 CHAPTER 6: The Political (In)capacity of the Informal City to Demand Better Services ................ 127 6.1 Joint Action for Water ............................................................................................................ 127 2 6.2 Government Action ................................................................................................................ 130 6.2.1 Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) ...................................................................................... 130 6.2.2 The Court Case against the Bholakpur Workshops ................................................. 133 6.3 Anti-poor Environmentalism .................................................................................................. 137 CHAPTER 7: Interaction Between Informal Processes and Water Management ............................ 141 7.1 The Modes of Supply ............................................................................................................. 141 7.2 Informality and Sanitation ...................................................................................................... 144 7.3 The Benefits of Formalization ................................................................................................ 146 CHAPTER 8: Conclusion ..................................................................................................................