West Bengal identified as among the 4 key focus markets for Sensus in India; company sees immense potential in the state

West Bengal identified as among the 4 key focus markets for Sensus in India; company sees immense potential in the state

Sensus, a Xylem brand, has 80 million+ metering devices installed globally. It has enabled 2000 cities with 38 million smart meters including the largest such project of its kind – Thames Water in UK. Sensusalso provides dedicated and secure two-way FlexNet communications network. The company founded in 1870 and present in 150+ countries worldwide, was acquired by Xylem Inc. in August 2016, as part of the strategy to create a full end-to-end solution globally.

·      Sensussees India as a strategic market and has been investing in it for the last 5 years. Water is the current focus for Sensushere though the parent company Xylem does a lot more globally beyond water.

·         West Bengal has been identified as a key focus state within the larger Indian market, due to the state government being progressive and thus more willing to look at best-in-class solutions from across the world. And the issue of access to drinking water is relatively more prevalent in the state relative to other Indian states.

·     Sensus India recently made its first big breakthrough in India where it is collaborating with Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to provide 2, 75,000 smart water meters in the first phase over a period of 3 years. The scale of Pune implementation is large, comparable to anywhere in the world. The project will ensure accurate data on billing, identify customer side leaks, manage their network and help reduce non-revenue water.

·         Sensus India sees schemes like AMRUT, as a likely game changer as it encourages municipal bodies across India to invest in smart distribution networks with the aim of delivering 24*7 clean water to people. Municipal bodies/water utilities in India are increasingly seeing the larger positive picture of how with the use of smart water meters and cutting edge technology solutions, they would be able to significantly cut down on non- revenue water.

·         West Bengal is one of the most densely populated states in India, with a growing urban population. Out the 4.11 crore villagers in India who don’t have clean water access 19% or 78 lakh are from West Bengal. Second only to Rajasthan which has 82 lakh villagers without clean water access. According to All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health, 84% of the rural population depend on ground water sources which puts a lot of strain on available resources.

·         While across India water availability is a major issue, West Bengal has been continuously facing an acute water crisis due to ground water depletion. The data also reveals that only around 56% families living in urban areas in west Bengal have access to safe drinking water which is far less than the national average of 70.6%. A recent study also suggested that the water table in few areas of the state has dropped by 80% and face drought like situation.

Kolkata Metropolitan Area, is the third most populous metropolitan area in India after Delhi and Mumbai. The area, administered by the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA), covers 72 cities, and 527 towns and villages. According to the 2011 census data, the total population of the Kolkata metropolitan area was 14,112,536. KMDA report states the total area is 1,886.67 km², making the population density 7,480 per km². The economy of West Bengal is the sixth-largest state economy in India with ₹13.14 lakh crore (US$180 billion) in GDP and per capita GDP of ₹108,000 (US$1,500). However, as per a study by the state’s Public health engineering, the average per capita water availability has dropped from 18.2 lakh litres in 2001 to 15.4 lakh litres in 2011 when compared to a ten-year average. It is likely to further drop to 13.4 lakh litres by 2025 and to 11.4 lakh litres by 2050.The current status of water availability in cities such as Kolkata is critical with much of the population facing severe water scarcity, particularly in summer.

·         Thus it is imperative for West Bengal to become more efficient in managing water and also conserve it as best as possible. Implementing a smart water network, including smart water meters which deliver real-time, highly accurate data about activity in the network has been shown globally to reduce water loss by 15-20%. Apartments using smart water technology, including smart water meters, can save up to 35- 40% water on a monthly basis.

·         A recent NITI Aayog report that draws data from 24 of the 29 states in India predicts India’s water crisis is only going to get worse. 600 million Indians face high to extreme water stress and about 2 lakh people die every year due to inadequate access to safe water. Also, 21 cities are likely to run out of groundwater by 2020. The situation is indeed alarming and it is high time governments and utilities look at solutions that help in not just addressing the crisis but turning it around.

·         Sensus has the industry’s fastest, most secure and cost-effective solution, including state-of- the-art and proven smart metering technology for water distribution. This technology can be scaled up seamlessly regardless of the physical size of the network or information complexity. A lot of people don’t understand that while there are alternatives for other natural resources, water does not have one. So it becomes even more imperative to conserve and utilize it in the most efficient manner.

·         Sensus India is engaged with most state governments and municipal corporations both directly and through our EPC/consultant partners. However, it does not comment or share specifics about any bid or tender we are participating in for multiple reasons. However, once it is formalized, we do ensure that the same is shared externally once the approvals are in place for the same.

·         Electro-magnetic based smart water meters calculate water flow accurately at all pressures and have an inbuilt communication functionality. They help in effective monitoring of leakages. All data including water flow, alarms with date and time stamps, gets stored in these smart meters which can be transferred through communication to the control center.

·         Sensus started their operations in India in 2014. Xylem, which acquired Sensus in November 2016, has in India, 450+ employees, factory in Vadodara and two global technology centers in Bangalore and Vadodara.  This infact makes Sensus the only metering player to have such a presence in India.