New Delhi: The Ministry of Jal Shakti has been continuously working with all the States and UTs to assist them with implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year with the ambitious and crucial objective of providing 55 litres of potable water per person per day through tap water connection to 180 million rural households by 2024.
This scheme is highly beneficial for all states/UTs especially the numerous advantages reaped by women and children from households having a potable tap water connection. The Mission has also been crucially benefitting those states in particular, who’ve been dealing with water issue owing to their geographical conditions.
The State of Gujarat is one such State that has been dealing with water issues due to its geographically arid conditions and the Jal Jeevan Mission is a potential boon for the masses in the region. Gujarat today presented its mid-term review to the National Jal Jeevan Mission officials who are in the process of reviewing the progress of the mission across the nation.
Gujarat has plans to provide 100% tap connections by the year 2022-23. The total number of households in Gujarat are 93,02,583 with 35,996 habitations, 18,191 villages, 13,931 Gram Panchayats, 247 blocks and 33 districts. In the progress reported till date, the State has succeeded in giving 8,50,871 Functional Households Tap Connections (FHTC), which is 76.29 % of the given target.
The mid-term review largely reflected the good progress by the State which needs to continue and the corresponding financial expenditure to be expedited. Gujarat may be a role model for utility-based approach for VWSC. The State may also expedite IoT/Sensor-based pilots in the Jal Jeevan Mission program.
The Ministry also requested State Government officials to ensure that all the anganwadi centres and schools are provided piped water supply as part of the special 100-day campaign- launched on 2nd October, 2020 to facilitate potable water in these institutions and securing a better future for our children as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
