Deadline over; Centre calls for expediting process to achieve 100 % TWCs
Vikas Sharma
JAMMU, Jan 15: The Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), a flagship initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019 to ensure access to safe drinking water for every household, has missed its 2024 deadline.
Follow the Daily Excelsior channel on WhatsApp
With the revised target now set for 2025, the Jal Shakti Ministry is focusing on States and Union Territories (UTs) that are struggling to meet the mission’s ambitious goals.
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Union Territory is among the worst-performing UTs in the country, with approximately 20% of households still awaiting tap water connections.
Out of the 19,23,500 households without tap water, 15,53,622 (around 80.77%) have received their connections, leaving a significant portion without access to this vital resource.
The performance gap is particularly noticeable in larger States like Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Kerala and West Bengal, where coverage remains under 60%.
West Bengal, with just 54.15% coverage, has the lowest among these, followed closely by Kerala, Jharkhand and Rajasthan. Meanwhile, 11 States and UTs have successfully achieved 100% tap water connection coverage.
While UTs like Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Puducherry are top performers with 100% coverage, Ladakh and Lakshadweep are also nearing full implementation.
J&K UT, however, lags far behind with just over 80% of households covered.
When contacted Mission Director for JJM in J&K, Khurshid Ahmed Shah told the EXCELSIOR that most of the people in Jammu are getting water supplied through the tube wells but due to deficient rainfall in the Jammu region the water level has gone down extensively, which is hindering the process of installing new Tap Water Connections (TWCs) under this mission.
“Meanwhile, the limited labour availability in the harsh winter months and heavy snowfall in some areas of the Kashmir valley are also contributing to the slow pace of progress in smooth pace of our work.
However, the Mission Director expressed confidence in meeting the new deadline, noting that despite the challenges, J&K is progressing at a steady pace compared to other States as well as the UTs.
“We are focused on bridging these gaps in 2025, ensuring no household is left without access to clean drinking water,” he maintained.
The Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) is a flagship program of the Government of India, which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 15, 2019.
The program is a crucial step towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 6, which aims to ensure access to water and sanitation for all.
As of now, the mission has connected 79.60% of the country’s households, covering over 15.41 crore homes out of the targeted 19.36 crore.
With concerted efforts in the year ahead, the Government under this prestigious project aims to provide universal access to tap water by the end of 2025.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
