Jal Jeevan Mission Scheme, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a huge success nationally. Today 73.27% of the rural households have an access to clean drinking water through taps. More than 1.55 lakh villages in India have so far reported ‘Har Ghar Jal’. In Uttar Pradesh, this mission has created history of sort by providing clean drinking water to thousands of people in Bundelkhand region.
The objective of Jal Jeevan Mission is to provide clean drinking water through tap to every rural family. The Har Ghar Jal Yojana of the Government of India, started under the Jal Jeevan Mission, was implemented on priority by the Yogi government in those districts of the state where the problem of water was a cause of concern for many years.
The aim of Jal Jeevan Mission is to provide ‘domestic tap connections’ to 2,62,29,815 families by 2024 in UP, 55 liters of water is to be supplied daily to every villager under Har Ghar Jal Yojana.
As of January 19, 2024, the total number of rural households in India stands at 19,26,09,499, out of which 14,11,29,022 now have tap connections.
Women have benefited due to access of pure drinking water to their homes. Especially in Bundelkhand and Vindhya, women had to fetch water from miles away, but after the launch of the Jal Jeevan Mission scheme, they are now devoting time to their children’s education alongwith other household works. They are also becoming self-reliant by setting up their own employment.
There were thousands of such villages in Mahoba, Lalitpur, Hamirpur, Jalaun, Chitrakoot, Banda and Jhansi of Bundelkhand, where people could not marry their daughters due to the water crisis. After the arrival of Jal Jeevan Mission scheme, the situation changed and clean drinking water started becoming available. For such villages, Jal Jeevan Mission Scheme became the lifeline of relationships.
Steps towards employment
Jal Jeevan Mission is not only ensuring supply of clean drinking water through taps in rural areas, but also providing employment to promising and needy people. Training is being provided to 13 youths under each Gram Panchayat.
Efforts to connect rural youth in UP with employment by providing training in various trades. In UP, 1,16,366 youths are being trained in plumbing, 1,16,366 as electricians, 1,16,366 as motor mechanics, 1,16,366 as fitters, 1,74,549 as masons and 1,16,366 as pump operators.
Steps towards making rural women self-reliant
Along with making rural women self-reliant in UP, 5 women from every village are being trained in water testing for clean drinking water. Women are testing water in the village with field test kits. So far more than 4,87,955 women have been trained in water testing. Women are checking 11 types of water purity in every village. The quality of water from taps, wells, hand pumps and tube wells is being tested.
Jal Jeevan Mission has changed the picture of Bundelkhand and Vindhya region which has been suffering for each drop of water for years.
Today the dream of pure drinking water in every house is being fulfilled. Namami Gange and Rural Water Supply department’s Har Ghar Nal Se Jal Yojana has become a new story of Bundelkhand and Vindhya region.Har Ghar Jal Yojana of Jal Jeevan Mission has saved large areas of the state from major drinking water crisis. The supply of pure drinking water from tap to every home in thousands of villages is a living proof of this.
Water is available from tap in every house. By getting pure water, the residents have been saved from diseases and the problem of water availability is also getting resolved.
The biggest problem of the people in the villages of Bundelkhand and Vindhya was drinking water. For years, women used to fetch water here carrying them on their heads from many kilometers away. This sequence, which started at 4 am in the morning, continued till late evening. But amidst this struggle for drinking water, a ray of hope brought the message of happiness in their lives.
The work of laying pipelines for drinking water on rocky lands, building water tanks in every village, building water treatment plants, increasing water sources and providing tap water to every home was done on a faster pace.
Under Jal Jeevan Mission, works are being carried out keeping the drought affected areas, water quality affected villages, aspirational and Japanese Encephalitis/Encephalitis Syndrome affected districts on priority. Aim is to get relief from diarrhea, cholera, typhoid, malaria, dengue, skin cancer, dental fluorosis, bone fluorosis, kidney stones, digestive system disorders and liver related diseases.
Current status of Har Ghar Jal Yojana in Bundelkhand
Full Functional House Hold Tap Connections (FHTC) in Bundelkhand are 1419730 and
Functional house hold tap connections provided in Bundelkhand are 1280292.
7681752 Villagers are getting the benefit of clean drinking water from tap.
Bundelkhand Piped Drinking Water Project
Work on Jal Jeevan Mission schemes is underway in 7 cities (Jhansi, Lalitpur, Jalaun, Hamirpur, Banda, Chitrakoot and Mahoba). A total of 71 schemes are being operated under 35 projects in the Bundelkhand region. There are 41 intake wells, 41 WTP, 331 CWR and 1258 OHTS under the projects of Jal Jeevan Mission in Bundelkhand region.
Water sources of projects
Betwa, Yamuna and Son rivers are being used as water sources in the districts. Water from 35 dams is being used under Jal Jeevan Mission Scheme.