New Delhi: Ministry of Jal Shakti is going to roll out the annual planning exercise of the Jal Jeevan Mission with States and UTs from Friday.
This is a month-long exercise, daily taking up two States/ UTs, by a committee chaired by Secretary, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) and with members from different Central Ministries/ Departments and NITI Aayog to do rigorous scrutiny of the proposed Annual Action Plan (AAP) prepared by states/ UTs before finalizing the same, said the Ministry in a statement on Thursday.
Thereafter, funds are released throughout the year and regular field visits, review meetings are held to ensure implementation of these Annual Action Plans to achieve the goal of Jal Jeevan Mission.
As the Jal Jeevan Mission – Har Ghar Jal announced on August 15, 2019, to provide Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every rural home by 2024, enters its third year of implementation with a central grant of Rs 50,011 crore in 2021-22, the National Jal Jeevan Mission, Ministry of Jal Shakti is set to roll out the annual planning exercise with states/ UTs from April 9, said the statement.
According to Jal Shakti Ministry, “This year is a very critical year for JJM, which requires intensive planning based on rigorous data analysis, the capacity of States/ UTs to execute the work based on last two year’s progress, their preparedness, etc.”
While implementing, States/ UTs are to give priority to water quality-affected areas, villages in drought-prone and desert areas, Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe majority villages, 60 JE-AES affected and 117 Aspirational districts, and Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana villages to provide all households with tap water connection in a time-bound manner, said the statement.
In addition to the 50,000 Crore budgetary allocation for JJM, there is also Rs. 26,940 Crore assured fund available under the 15th Finance Commission tied grants to RLB/PRIs for water & sanitation, matching State share, and externally aided projects.
Thus, in 2021-22, more than Rs. 1 lakh Crore is planned to be invested in the country on ensuring tap water supply to rural homes. This kind of investment is likely to continue over three years to achieve Har Ghar Jal.
The state action plan is prepared by states/UTs with an objective to provide 100 percent of households with tap water connections and achieve overall drinking water security.
