Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India
India: Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas was 83.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India is 83.0%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 8.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India peaked at 83.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 67.4%, in 2000.
That places India 38th out of 105 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 67.4% | — |
| 2001 | 68.1% | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 68.7% | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 69.3% | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 69.9% | +0.9% |
| 2005 | 70.6% | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 71.2% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 71.9% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 72.5% | +0.9% |
| 2009 | 73.1% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 73.8% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 74.4% | +0.9% |
| 2012 | 75.1% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 75.7% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 76.4% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 77.0% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 77.7% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 78.3% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 79.0% | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 79.7% | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 80.3% | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 81.0% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 81.6% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 82.3% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 83.0% | +0.8% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 83.0% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 55.4%, 1.5× the median. (29 countries reporting)
- India's 83.0% is above the median for South Asia, which is 61.5%, 1.3× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 70.3% | 67.4% | 73.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 76.7% | 73.8% | 79.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 81.6% | 80.3% | 83.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near India
More environment data for India
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 11.05 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 12.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.254 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 0.954 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 3.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 1.12 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India?
- Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas in India was 83.0% in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 83.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 67.4% in 2000.
- How does India rank for using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas?
- India ranks 38th out of 105 countries with data for 2024.
- Is using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Using safely managed drinking water in urban vs. rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proportion of people using an improved drinking water source that is located on premises, available when needed and free from fecal and priority chemical contamination.