Centre allocates Rs 3,411 crore grant to Gujarat for JJM 2021-22

AHMEDABAD: The Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India, has allocated Rs 3,411 crore of funds to the Government of Gujarat under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) for the year 2021-22. The funds have been allocated to achieve the goal of ‘Har Ghar Jal’, which is to provide every household with tap water supply.

Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister of Jal Shakti, Government of India, has approved the four-fold increase in the allocation of funds to Gujarat for water supply. The JJM was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019 to ensure the supply of potable tap water to every household in rural areas by 2024. During 2020-21, in Gujarat, 10.94 lakh rural households were provided with tap water connections out of the total 92.92 lakh rural households, according to the official figures.

Last year, CM Vijay Rupani promised to implement the JJM on a large scale with speed to ensure tap water supply to all by 2022. To strengthen the monitoring of tap water, Gujarat has taken up smart water monitoring in 20 villages. The state has 86 water testing laboratories, out of which 8 are NABL accredited.