Jal Shakti ministry to adopt a flexible approach for tackling water issue

Outlining the broad contours of the strategy, Parameswaran Iyer, drinking water and sanitation secretary said, “Water conservation will go together with supply. Delivery will be managed by the community.”

In its 2019 manifesto, the BJP had promised that it would launch the ‘Jal Jivan Mission’, under which its government would ensure piped water for every household by 2024. The manifesto had added that the government would ensure “sustainability of water supply through a special focus on conservation of rural water bodies and ground water recharge”.

The government held a meeting with various state representatives on Tuesday to discuss issues around water availability and local challenges. Speaking on the sidelines of the meeting, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said, “Water is a state subject but we will provide all the hand-holding required to ensure we improve our coverage of clean drinking water from 18 per cent currently to 100 per cent by 2024.”

He said the situation was particularly bad in some states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and