Gaps in implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission: Opposition members in LS

New Delhi, Mar 19 (PTI) Opposition members on Wednesday said there were gaps in the implementation of the government's various drinking water schemes and flagged concerns of water contamination in several parts of the country.

Participating in the discussion in Lok Sabha on the demands for grants of the Jal Shakti Ministry, opposition members also claimed under utilization of funds allocated to the ministry and said its assertions of the success of the Jal Jeevan Mission remained only on paper.

BJP and NDA members praised the government for providing piped water supply across remote corners of the country and questioned why opposition-ruled states of Jharkhand, Kerala, and West Bengal were lagging in providing clean drinking water to rural households.

Initiating the discussion, BJP member Jagdambika Pal also questioned the opposition's commitment to ensuring safe drinking water for all.

According to official data, Kerala has the lowest coverage under the Jal Jeevan Mission at 54.41 per cent, followed by Jharkhand at 54.77 and West Bengal at 55.01 per cent.

BJP member Rajkumar Chahar from Uttar Pradesh said in the 16th century, Mughal emperor Akbar decided to shift the capital of his empire from Fatehpur Sikri to Delhi because of water scarcity.

"He shifted the capital from Fatehpur Sikri because of water shortage and high levels of salinity in water," he said.

Chahar said he was fortunate that he was elected as Lok Sabha member from Fatehpur Sikri in 2019 and the same year Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Jal Jeevan Mission from the ramparts of the Red Fort.

"A 440-year old problem was was solved in 2019 when the people of Fatehpur Sikri, Agra district, Mathura and Firozabad were allotted funds from the Rs 4,000 crore scheme by the Prime Minister and work is on to supply Ganga water in every household," Chahar said.

Congress member Mohamed Jawed said a Niti Ayog report had claimed that nearly 70 per cent of water supplied in the country was contaminated.

"This index has 122 countries and India ranks 120th," Jawed claimed.

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi expressed concerns about the ministry's alleged "severe" underutilisation of the allocated funds.

Arguing this to be part of a prevailing trend, Owaisi said the ministry utilised 74 per cent of their allocation in 2021, 72 per cent in 2022, 88 per cent in 2023 and 31.4 per cent in 2024-25.

"The programme may declare victory on paper, but the reality is different," he said.

Owaisi said reports from Solapur, Aurangand and Palghar districts in Maharashtra reveal persistent water shortages. In drought-stricken Bundelkhand in Uttar Pradesh, people across multiple districts are still desperately searching for water.

DMK member T R Baalu urged the Centre to prioritise connecting northern and southern Indian rivers, highlighting the economic and logistical benefits of such initiatives.

He claimed that the government was moving slowly on the inter-state river-linking projects, particularly in peninsular India.

Baalu said despite promises made during the 2014 elections, substantial steps toward connecting water-surplus Himalayan rivers with water-deficient peninsular rivers remain unfulfilled.

"In 2014, Modi ji had promised to prioritise inter-state river connections, including Himalayan and Peninsular reservoirs. However, as far as peninsular rivers are concerned, not even a detailed project report (DPR) has been developed," he said.

Baalu pointed out the critical need to link major peninsular rivers like the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Pennar and Kaveri to address water scarcity in southern India.

BJP member and former Karnataka chief minister Basavraj Bommai said the Interstate Water Disputes Act was causing greatest loss to the country, both financially and in terms of livelihood.

"The act creates more disputes than solving them," he said.

Bommai expressed his disappointment about existing tribunals in multiple states not being able to resolve the disputes pending for the last 50 years.

He proposed a single water tribunal comprising a sitting Supreme Court judge to settle disputes between states within six months.

SP member Pushpendra Saraoj said Jal Jeevan Mission has failed to achieve its objective of providing safe drinking water.

In many places, there is no water in the taps and in many places overhead water tanks are not there, he said.

Saroj said at many places rural roads have not been repaired after laying the pipeline for Jal Jeevan Mission.

Speaking about the Clean Ganga Mission project, he said, it has failed to meet its target.

In the last 10 years, he said, the government has spent Rs 20,000 crore but the condition of river Ganga remains almost the same.

Congress member Anto Antony said while the Jal Jeevan Mission is a good scheme, its execution in many states remains a matter of deep concern.

In many states taps have been fixed but there is no water and some states there are not even tap just pipes laid, he alleged.

Water security is not a privilege but it's a right of people of India, Antony said. PTI UZM NAB DP SKU ZMN

Source: PTI