The Union Jal Shakti Minister, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat chaired a review meeting on Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in Jaipur with 17 Members of Parliament (MPs) of Rajasthan and PHED officials to expedite the implementation of the mission in the State. All Executive Engineers/ Superintendent Engineers were connected virtually. The meeting began with a welcome address by ACS, PHED, Rajasthan followed by a brief presentation by Additional Secretary and Mission Director, National Jal Jeevan Mission, who shared the mission overview and status of implementation of works in the various districts of the State in comparison with the national average. He also explained about the status of planning as well as the role of Members of Parliament in the implementation of the mission.
Thanking all the Members of Parliament of Rajasthan for their active participation in the day-long review meeting, the Union Minister, Jal Shakti appreciated their concerns as well as valuable suggestions to bring improvement in the pace of implementation of mission along with ensuring the quality of works. Mentioning about various life changing initiatives of the Government of India to improve the lives of the people especially the poor & marginalized communities ensuring ‘no one is left out’, he underscored the importance of Jal Jeevan Mission in the context of a State like Rajasthan. Shri Shekhawat mentioned that the community participation and empowerment is the soul of the mission which will lead to its success. Therefore, the State must make all out efforts to involve the local village community in the mission works starting from preparation of Village Action Plan (VAP). He urged the State Government to ensure the participation of all the Members of Parliament to make Jal Jeevan Mission a ‘Jan Andolan’, a people’s movement.
Shri Shekhawat appealed to all senior officers to give primacy to the quality of works by ensuring regular inspection and taking corrective measures. He assured there will be no dearth of fund from Government of India and extended all assistance to ensure the State becomes ‘Har Ghar Jal’ in a time-bound manner. He further invited the State PHED Minister and senior officers to approach him whenever required regarding resolving any issue pertaining to drinking water supply in the State.
Lastly, he focused on improving the drinking water sources so that water supply to rural households is not disrupted. He stressed on exploring convergence by dovetailing various schemes at village level for source sustainability, viz. MGNREGS, 15th FC tied grants, DMDF, etc.
