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Informist, Tuesday, Mar. 10, 2026

 

--Cabinet OKs INR 8.7 tln for extension of Jal Jeevan Mission 

--Cabinet extends Jal Jeevan Mission till Dec 2028 

 

NEW DELHI – The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission till December 2028, with an enhanced outlay of INR 8.7 trillion and a shift in focus from infrastructure creation to service delivery under a restructured JJM 2.0.

 

The Cabinet cleared a proposal by the Ministry of Jal Shakti to strengthen governance and institutional systems for sustainable rural drinking water supply. The central government's assistance for the programme has been increased to INR 3.59 trillion from INR 2.08 trillion approved in 2019–20 (Apr-Mar), implying an additional central share of INR 1.51 trillion, a release by the government read.

 

As part of the restructuring, the government will introduce a national digital framework called 'Sujalam Bharat', under which each village will receive a unique service area identification number to digitally map the entire drinking water supply system from source to tap, as per the release. The initiative will also involve Gram Panchayats and village water and sanitation committees in the commissioning and handover of schemes through a process termed 'Jal Arpan', it said.

 

Under the revised framework, a Gram Panchayat will declare itself "Har Ghar Jal" only after certifying that adequate operation and maintenance systems are in place. The programme will also promote an annual community-led maintenance event called "Jal Utsav" to strengthen local participation and accountability in rural water supply systems.

 

Launched in 2019, the mission aimed to provide piped drinking water to all rural households. According to the release, tap water coverage has increased from 32.3 million households (17%) in 2019 to about 158 million households (81.61%) out of the 193.6 million rural households identified by states and Union territories.

 

The government said the next phase of the mission will target universal tap water coverage for all rural households by December 2028, while strengthening long-term sustainability, operation and maintenance of water supply infrastructure through coordination across government departments.  End

 

Reported by Pallavi Singhal

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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