Mumbai: Maharashtra Government is formulating a policy under which solar energy will be utilised for purification of drinking water to protect people from water-borne infections.

"The number of cases of people falling ill due to the menace of unsafe drinking water are on the rise. To counter this menace, the water supply department is in the process of preparing a strong policy which will enable impure water to get treated using solar energy," Water Supply Minister Babanrao Lonikar said, adding that 11 crore people of the state will get benefited once the policy is implemented.