Yes- we actually started out going down the road of conservation via smart metering devices. We quickly realized that we would be facing an uphill battle if we kept trying to start there.

Also, as a point of clarification, no city in India receives 24x7 water (except Jamshedpur), although many cities have pilot projects (Nagpur is the closest to Mumbai). The Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC) is probably the furthest ahead as far as public water utilities go, and many people think they have 24x7 water, but they just have a very reliable, but intermittent, source of water. The BMC has done a very good job of trying to reduce inconvenience to residents.

We actually think that, ironically, as water gets more expensive for the higher income groups, they will then start turning to water conservation mechanisms. That's the pull we are seeing in Bangalore, and what we think will be the pull in the future. Lower income communities already do a pretty good job of conserving water since they tend to pay a higher price. It's amazing what market forces do for water conservation.

We are also encouraging communities to introduce slab billing and try to do individual apartment metering. By raising water prices for the highest users, people are becoming more price sensitive and trying to use less.