Abstract
Rapid urbanisation in India has led to the huge demand for basic infrastructure such as housing, electricity, health, roads, water supply and sanitation. In India, most of the cities whether planned or otherwise are experiencing huge population growth, but this growth in population is not matched with the expansion of services such as water supply and sanitation. According to the 2011 census. Around 52 per cent of urban households use unsafe water resources for drinking purposes in Orrisa, India. The empirical study located in Bhubaneswar city in the state of Orissa, India tries to understand the issues of water supply and related policies in the context of urban poor. It is important to understand the genesis of the water supply policies and their implementation especially in the context of urban poor. The mixed method has been used in the study. Binary logistic regression was used to understand the impact of socio-economic background on access to water supply. Major findings of the study show that urban poor receive very poor water supply services and are living in impoverished conditions. They are vulnerable to waterborne diseases and other infections. An integrated approach to water supply provisioning is required to make the urban areas livable.