Introduction Sikkim, the second smallest state in India located in the northeastern Himalayas, boasts of incredible natural beauty, characterized by steep terrain and fragile ecosystems. It also has rapidly growing urban centers and one of the lowest poverty rates in the country. This growth, however, faces some constraints: urban services struggling to keep pace, growing tourism, traffic congestion, climate risks, and limited technical skills at the local institutional level. Moreover, the terrain and landscape pose a challenge for these urban centers, stifling infrastructure development and service delivery. Sikkim also has extremely low water supply coverage. Most towns receive two to three hours of supply each day. About half of the water in the distribution network is lost, and nonrevenue water stands at 50%. Although Sikkim has achieved open‑defecation‑free status, fecal sludge management and wastewater treatment systems remain limited, posing risks to public health and the mountain environment. To support the state, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved the Sikkim Integrated Urban Development Project in 2025. This ambitious undertaking aims to improve climate‑resilient water supply and sanitation services, strengthen urban mobility, and build institutional capacity for integrated urban planning and sustainable operations, helping transform livability in seven towns: Gangtok, Gyalshing, Mangan, Pakyong, Rangpo, Singtam, and Soreng. This article examines the water supply and citywide inclusive sanitation component to show how infrastructure upgrades, climate-risk-informed design, performance-based operation and maintenance (O&M), and institutional reforms can move Sikkim's towns from intermittent services toward more resilient and inclusive urban services. Designing Climate-Resilient Water and Sanitation Systems The Water Resilience Trust Fund, under ADB’s Water Financing Partnership Facility, supported project preparation through the India Urban and Water Projects Support Facility technical assistance. With its support, infrastructure interventions were designed following a thorough assessment of climate risks and a social and gender analysis to ensure social inclusion. The assistance has been highly appropriate as Sikkim is vulnerable to multiple climate hazards, such as droughts, forest fires, storms, flooding, landslides, and glacial lake outburst floods. The exposure to climate and disaster risks is largely due to Sikkim’s unique location in the Himalayas. The seven project towns are at elevations between 330 meters and 1,900 meters, with low temperatures, intense rainfall, and heavy snow in higher reaches. Areas without forest cover can also be prone to droughts, while dry winters from December to March can increase the risk of forest fires. Guided by the climate risk assessment, the project integrates adaptation measures into water and sanitation systems designed for steep terrain and dispersed settlements. It will rehabilitate 24.5 kilometers (km) of the existing water supply distribution network and build 126.5 km of new water supply networks in the towns of Pakyong, Rangpo, Singtam, and selected zones of the capital, Gangtok. The project is also constructing three new water treatment plants, over 45 km of street sewers and fecal sludge management systems, and six integrated sewage and fecal sludge treatment plants. In addition, a new water supply source will be developed in Gangtok to address poor water supply coverage, while groundwater recharge pits and rainwater harvesting are proposed to help mitigate droughts. Drainage features will incorporate flood protection elements and nature-based solutions, where applicable. The infrastructure will also include digital technology and early warning systems for disasters and other extreme events. Strengthening Institutions for Lasting Services Hard infrastructure is one part of the transformation. To sustain improvements in service delivery while keeping pace with its rapidly growing economy, the project also supports institutional strengthening. Aside from limited technical capacity, integrated urban planning frameworks are still in their nascent stage and there is a need for more modern financial and asset management systems, and better interagency coordination. The project will update the Sikkim Strategic Urban Plan with resilient and gender-responsive measures, prepare town master plans using geographic information systems (GIS), and develop a range of planning and management tools, including water and sanitation safety plans, water security plans for four towns, asset management policy systems for water supply and wastewater infrastructure, a sustainable O&M plan, a nonrevenue water reduction plan, and financial management and tariff studies for water supply, sewerage, and sanitation. At least 70 staff from the Urban Development Department, Public Health Engineering Department, and the State Climate Change Cell will also be trained in urban planning, resilience action planning, disaster risk management, and gender. A vital element of the project will be the application of performance-based O&M contracts for water supply and sanitation. This will help the Public Health Engineering Department, which owns and operates the assets, ensuring capacity transfer and sustainable service delivery. Sustaining new and improved systems will depend on the capacity to manage and operate them over the long term. Supporting Communities Through Inclusive Service Delivery Alongside technical capacity and urban governance, the project also underscores the importance of community ownership from project preparation through post-completion operations. The key questions are practical: do the services respond to local needs, and will households and communities use them in ways that support long-term viability? During the preparation phase, consultations were held with different stakeholders, particularly women and disadvantaged groups, since their lived realities, including the climate change impacts they experience, are not the same as those of others. To support these discussions, a project information booklet was provided describing the project components, benefits, resettlement entitlements, and how to voice grievances. By instilling inclusion, concerns and conflicts can be resolved early to minimize disruptions during project implementation. Communities also become more aware of how their towns and ways of life are expected to change. For women and girls, hours spent on unpaid duties and caregiving related to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) could be reduced significantly. They would also gain equal access to safe WASH facilities, enabling better menstrual health and hygiene. Furthermore, the project will develop women-led community-based WASH services and initiatives, ensure gender-responsive features are embedded in city climate action plans, include women municipal staff in capacity development, and help prepare a gender equality strategy to promote gender-inclusive governance. Women’s self‑help groups, originally initiated under the government’s National Urban Livelihoods Mission, will also play a key role in supporting community participation and inclusive service delivery. By engaging women’s self‑help groups in awareness, behavior change communication, and small‑scale WASH initiatives, the project strengthens local ownership while reducing the time burden on women for water collection and sanitation‑related tasks. The approach also builds women’s leadership and livelihood opportunities in urban service management, contributing to gender‑responsive and resilient urban development. In particular, certified skills training, paid internships, and job placements will be provided for young women in nontraditional sectors such as masonry, electrical work, sanitary inspection, supervision of water works, water quality testing, and O&M of water systems. Toward Resilient Urban Services for Mountain Towns Sikkim has high hopes for better water supply and sanitation for its mountain towns. The planned infrastructure and system changes, coupled with rigorous planning and capacity building, are expected to strengthen and future-proof the state. For example, expanding the water supply distribution network includes resolving the feeder mains and metering works to reduce nonrevenue water to its 20% target. Improving O&M know-how and adopting digital technologies, such as GIS-based planning and financial management systems, can likewise result in sustainable and seamless services. Once the project is completed in 2032, more than 108,000 people are expected to benefit from continuous piped water supply (92% of the project towns’ total population) while more than 102,000 people (100% of the project towns' total population) are set to benefit from citywide inclusive sanitation. Although this article focuses on water and sanitation, the wider project links these investments with urban mobility, stormwater drainage, public spaces, and integrated planning. A key example is the transit hub-cum-community complex, which is designed not only as a mobility facility but also as a multiuse urban asset. The complex will include smart parking, public transport and transit facilities, commercial and community spaces, EV and ambulance infrastructure, grid-tied rooftop solar power, and gender-responsive features, including barrier-free toilets, changing areas, adequate lighting, seating, and safety surveillance. It will also serve as emergency disaster relief centers. The complex will create opportunities for women’s economic empowerment, including women-led O&M services for parking, shops, and facility management. Training women as taxi drivers under the EV network, and for local tourism and road safety management will also be offered. This integration is especially important in Sikkim’s terrain, where resilient services, safe movement, inclusive public spaces, and disaster-ready facilities need to work as one urban system. Lessons from Sikkim can inform other mountain and small-state urban projects prepared through Water Resilience Trust Fund-supported technical assistance or similar facilities. This project is featured in the Water Financing Partnership Facility Annual Report 2025. Resources Asian Development Bank. 2026. Water Financing Partnership Facility Annual Report 2025. ADB. 2025. Sikkim Integrated Urban Development Project: Report and Recommendation of the President. ADB. 2024. India: Sikkim Integrated Urban Development Project: Climate Risk Assessment. ADB. 2023. Approval for Fund Allocation under Water Resilience Trust Fund. Unpublished. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development. 2025. New Scientific Study Confirms Climate Change Played Key Role in Deadly 2023 Lake Outburst in Sikkim. Ask the Experts Sourav Majumder Senior Project Officer, India Resident Mission, Asian Development Bank Sourav Majumder worked on complex urban infrastructure projects in India, handling planning, and engineering design and implementation before joining ADB. He has an academic background in civil engineering and holds a master’s degree in Urban Planning from the School of Planning and Architecture in New Delhi. Kyaw Thu Senior Urban Development Specialist, Sectors Department 2, Asian Development Bank Kyaw Thu leads sovereign operations covering urban development, infrastructure and governance, water supply and sanitation, solid waste and wastewater management, municipal finance, climate and disaster resilience, and integrated urban planning. He has also managed regional technical assistance and trust funds supporting smart and digital city solutions, and livable city initiatives. His portfolio spans South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Prior to ADB, he worked in academia in the United Kingdom and Thailand and with the United Nations Habitat in Myanmar. Tanya Huizer Senior Water Resilience Specialist, Water and Urban Development Sector Office, Sector Department 2, Asian Development Bank Tanya Huizer has experience in coastal and river management, nature-based solutions, and resilient cities. She manages the Water Resilience Trust Fund and works on river basin peer-to-peer learning, youth engagement, laundry transformation, partnerships, healthy rivers and food systems and capacity development. Elga Reyes Consultant, Asian Development Bank Elga Reyes is a communications and knowledge management consultant with over 12 years of experience, primarily with the Asian Development Bank. She has supported the sectors of transport, urban development, and water, as well as technical assistance projects focused on future cities, ASEAN smart cities, waste management, and the circular economy. She has also written for UNICEF Philippines, Eco-Business, and other international and local publications and platforms. Leave your question or comment in the section below: View the discussion thread.