The commodity supercycle has impacted the roll-out of the government’s flagship scheme to connect every household with tap water, the Jal Jeevan Mission. Given that the marquee scheme, to be completed by 2024 holds the key to helping the BJP secure a third consecutive victory in the Lok Sabha polls, a committee has been constituted to find out a solution to restart the stalled work, Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said in an interview.

We have witnessed improvements with the Jal Jeevan Mission. The coverage of drinking water at household level has improved from 16% to 49%. Also, 33% of new households have started receiving water, which has helped relieve some pressure. The tap connections under this mission are called Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC). The functionality means quality water, and quantity means at least 55 litres of water per day per person along with regularity. If the three metrics are met, the connection will be considered functional. Through this scheme we are close to reaching 100% water connections in areas such as Bundelkhand, whose 11 districts used to be extremely water scarce. Similarly in drought prone areas of Telangana, the challenges have been met. States such as Bihar today have more than 95% of households with running tap water. The scheme is under progress and we are determined to complete the project by the end of 2024.