This paper is based on an ongoing study of the Tiruppur Water Supply and Sewerage Project tries to understand PPPs and draw lessons about the claimed benefits and effectiveness of PPP projects in water sector for providing services to the broad spectrum of users in the society within the context of the Tiruppur Project. The paper looks at the structure that the Tiruppur Project is operating under to study the cost and risk sharing arrangements between private and public sectors in Tiruppur Project. The preliminary conclusions of the study show that the project has not been able to improve the access and affordability of water for the poor, which was claimed as one of the important benefits. The paper also raises questions about the claimed difference between Private Sector Participation (PSP) projects and PPP projects. This paper was presented at Third International Conference on Public Policy and Management, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore 3rd – 6th August, 2008.
