‘Nal Se Jal’: In Next Major Mass Outreach, Modi Government May Target Assured 55 Litres Water Per Day For All

In what can be the next major mass outreach program of the Modi government, officials are finalising the plans to ensure 55 litres water per day per person as per the Jal Jeevan Mission, Hindustan Times has reported.

The report quotes officials saying that the scheme to ensure ‘Nal se Jal’ for all rural households by 2024 is to be presented before the Cabinet for approval after the remaining modalities are covered. Among the major proposals is ensuring 43-55 litres per capita per day (LPCD) depending on the season, with the lower limit to be applied only for lean seasons.

A large part of the scheme will be met through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) which provides assured labour to rural workers who volunteer for unskilled work.

A fund for the Jal Jeevan Mission - likely to be named as the Rashtriya Jal Jeevan Kosh, is also to be created which may be formulated on the lines of Swachh Bharat Kosh. The Swachh Bharat Kosh streamlines philanthropic and corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributions towards the Clean India Mission launched by PM Modi at the beginning of his first term.

The Jal Jeevan Mission has been launched at a time when large parts of India have been categorised as highly stressed in terms of water security. A NITI Aayog report had said that 600 million Indians face an acute water crisis, which will continue to worsen with climate change and other factors.

254 districts, depending on the level of water stress they face, have been identified to be remedied under the phase 1 of the Jal Jeevan Mission.