Clean Water through Nanotechnology: Needs, Gaps, and Fulfillment

Crowded, expanding cities in many parts of the world are experiencing an increased demand for freshwater, and planners are unclear as to how the water needs of tomorrow will be met. In cities such as Bangalore, where data are currently the most valuable commodity, we believe that a data ecosystem could be created for water. Focus on water availability is likely to create businesses, drive the economy, and make the world breathe better. Taking a specific case, India has just 4% of the global freshwater resources but ∼18% of the world’s population. The country, which was largely rural years ago, has en masse become urban in the past two decades. The urban population has risen from 28% in 2000 to 33% in 2016. With a growth rate of over 6% in the gross domestic product (GDP), the most populous countries, such as India and China, are increasing their chemical, pharmaceutical, agrochemical, automotive, petrochemical, semiconductor, and many other outputs, which will eventually “enrich” our ecosystem materially. Simultaneously, their rapidly declining water resources will be burdened by unprocessed industrial waste.