Packaged Drinking Water - A Trivial Necessity, a Study in Kolkata, India

Water, the most essential element of life is free in nature along with air. About 70% of earth’s surface is covered with water but only 3% of world’s water is fresh. 2% is frozen in the polar ice caps and glaciers and 1% is ground water. Only 0.02% is freshwater lakes and rivers. As the world population increased due to urbanization and industrialization, the demand for water kept rising but the quality kept deteriorating. Water scarcity afflicted many nations and access to clean drinking water and sanitation became difficult. The contrast between tap water and bottled water reflects the contest for authority and public trust between governments and corporations. Packaged drinking water industry has grown in all the developed economics of the world. The product is targeted especially at touring and traveling market segments. The growth of this industry can be due to contamination/shortage of water supply in the cities. The demand for consumption of packaged water in India is estimated at 500 million liters of pure water bottles and the market is expected to grow at a rate of 25-35% per annum.