ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses issues related to provision of safe water in urban slums and rural areas. Slums are very common in the urban landscape of the developing world. The chapter illustrates how participatory approach can be used for effective design of treatment systems for the provision of safe water system in peri-urban low-income settlements. The overall goal of the Alternative Water Systems Project was the participatory development and assessment of an alternative model of safe water provision in urban slums in order to improve drinking water quality. The magnitude of the challenges are particularly disconcerting given that provision of safe drinking water and sanitation appears to be articulated and prioritized in the country at the national and subnational levels. As India makes efforts to provide safe drinking water to more than a billion people, it should be recognized that the problems encountered in underprivileged communities in urban areas are quite unique and different from those in privileged communities.
