The Need : Water Vending Machines ( Not a Mineral Water Plant )

The region faces contaminated water 

V. Madugula is a place in AP, where residents of a small village had to protest to demonstrate the sorry state of water. Here's a small synopsys of the news I received from Google Alert ( thanks to gemini )

Here are the the impacts of 15 years of quarrying in Anakapalli district:

• Quarrying has dried up local streams and borewells across three villages, causing severe water scarcity.

• The remaining borewells, even those drilled deep, are yielding contaminated water, forcing villagers to use unsafe sources.

• Residents attribute serious health problems directly to consuming this polluted water from the quarrying sites.

• Villagers have appealed repeatedly for a mineral water plant and official intervention, but assurances remain unimplemented.

• Local leaders threaten to present samples of the polluted water to the District Collector if authorities fail to act.

I don't know how have the villagers come up with demand for a Mineral Water Plant; but the true need is Properly Run Water Vending Stations. Water ATM's

And they should not be just install-forget type; but entrepreneur driven.There is a lot more as a business, Good, Ethical business in this. Watch this Video

These Reports : Greatly misleading !

Today I received an email which was mentioning the growth of the Bottled Water Industry in India. I handed over the link to Gemini and asked it to concise the same for me, and the report ( which is on sale for several thousand USD, and compiled by a US agency ) just says simple 3-4 not so great things. Here's the synopsys of the synopsys provided by Gemini :-

1. Growth Trajectory: The market is projected to grow from over 84 thousand Crores INR in 2024 to over 2.6 lakh thousand Crores INR by 2033. (12.45% CAGR).

2. Key Drivers: Growth is fueled by rising health consciousness, concerns over tap water safety, and the expanding spending power of the urban middle class.

3. Product Shift: The industry is moving toward premiumization and innovation, with strong demand for functional, flavored, and sparkling water options.

4. Sustainability & Regulation: New FSSAI rules mandate the use of 30% recycled PET (r-PET) in bottles by March 2025, pushing brands toward eco-friendly packaging solutions.

5. Distribution Change: E-commerce, quick-commerce, and the HoReCa segment are modernizing distribution while brands expand fiercely into Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

As a "confirmation Bias" or "Availability Heuristic", people get hooked to these so-called "growth" figures. Let's go deeper to take an overview ....

Consumption Pattern

This whole thing talks about "Bottled" water. How does it easily assume that people are going to get driven by fear, and buy more "Bottled" water ? And who are these people ? only those who live in Urbans, Metros ? Even in Metros, I haven't observed anyone buying a "50 Rs" bottle, when a "20 Rs" bottle is available. The only buy when they are made to. like inside a Food Mall, where only the Bisleri Bliss is available sold at Rs. 30 instead of Rs. 20 the regular Bisleri.

Agreed, there are changes in people's consumptions. It's only by Variety. However, someone looks at this report & thinks that how great opportunity it is, it's only half the truth. The opportunity is to be properly encashed by understanding consumption patterns, locale by locale. 

Alternate Solutions

Not that just bottled water is the solution. Who says tap water is bad in every part in India ? It is fairly good, and improving season by season. Rainwater Harvesting is on the move, and people might have their own stored water at their houses. Water Vending Machines ( ATMs ) are also a great way to substitutue the bottled water. It goes further and offers clean, cheap and yet sustainable solution for all.