On the Jal Jeevan Mission – Providing clean water to all

Source: This post on the Jal Jeevan Mission has been created based on the article “Providing clean water to all” published in “The Hindu” on 25^th January 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2 Social Justice – Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population.

News: The article discusses the impact of the Jal Jeevan Mission.

Background:

Launched in 2019, the Jal Jeevan Mission aims to achieve the objective of providing piped water in adequate quantities and of prescribed quality on a regular and long-term basis to every rural household in India.

Its achievements include:

1. It has already provided tap water to 73% of rural households. More than 14 crore rural households have tap connections compared to only 3.23 crore in 2019.
2. Over 5.29 lakh village water and sanitation committees/Pani Samitis have been constituted and 5.17 lakh village action plans have been developed.
3. About 22.98 lakh women have been trained for testing water samples using field testing kits.

How did the Jal Jeevan Mission deal with the various challenges?

1. Different Regional Needs: Every region had different needs, which were taken care of. Insulated pipes were used in hilly and cold regions. In villages with water quality issues, multi-village schemes through bulk water transfer were planned.
2. Transparency and Efficiency: A dashboard that gives real-time updates, progress reports, and so on, ensures transparency and efficiency in water resource management. It also ensures continuous monitoring and surveillance of water quality parameters through advanced technologies.
3. Water Quality: A proactive Water Quality Management Information System helps detect contamination or deterioration in water quality, thereby enabling prompt corrective action and grievance redress.

What can be the positive impacts of the Jal Jeevan Mission?

Its impact has extended beyond the provision of clean water. This includes:

Preventing Infant Mortality: Providing safe water can reduce infant deaths by almost 30%, with the potential to prevent 25% of under-five deaths in India (1,36,000 child deaths annually).

Preventing Deaths due to Diarrhoea: A WHO study states that 4 lakh diarrhoeal deaths can be averted if tap water is provided in every household.

Economic Savings: The Jal Jeevan Mission can lead to economic savings of up to $101 billion or ₹8.37 lakh crore (due to savings on health-related expenditure).

Community-Building: It can strengthen the socio-economic fabric of rural communities by bringing in a sense of community.

Skill Building: The empowerment of the youth through skill development, and the creation of local water enterprises can enhance skills of the rural population.
For instance, Nal Jal Mitra initiative equips villagers with skills to carry out minor repairs and maintenance of the piped water supply.

Employment Generation: A study estimates that the Mission’s employment generation potential during the construction phase, including both indirect and direct employment, is huge. Additionally, employment will be generated in the operation and maintenance stage.

Through the Mission, India is moving towards achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal 6 (clean water and sanitation for all).

Question for practice:

What can be the positive impacts of the Jal Jeevan Mission, apart from ensuring clean water supply?