Mumbai, July 7
Maharashtra Minister of Water Supply and Sanitation Gulabrao Patil, in a written reply, told the Legislative Council that the state has not received central funds for the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) scheme from October 2024, and is using its own funds to complete the ongoing projects.
The Minister also informed that a total of 51,558 schemes have been sanctioned, out of which 26,009 are still ongoing. The question was raised by Pradnya Satav, Satej Patil (Congress) and others.
Minister Patil said that the state government has given funds worth Rs 2483.58 crore to complete ongoing schemes.
However, the Minister of State Meghana Sakore-Bordikar, who was present in the council, intervened and said, “We are following up with the central government to release funds at the earliest. To ensure that the ongoing works are not stopped, for the year 2025-26, we have decided to give additional funds worth Rs 3913 crore.â€
The state government's reply accepted that the pace of the works undertaken in Jal Jeevan Mission has slowed due to the unavailability of lands, opposition of locals, permissions from different departments, delays from contractors, failure of sources and lack of funds.
The reply stated that Rs 2483.58 crore has been released as a special case from the Maharashtra government since the centre has not released funds for the scheme. It mentioned that three letters had already been sent to the Jalshakti ministry to release funds, and a meeting with the union minister was also held.
JJM was envisioned to provide safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections by 2024 to all households in rural India.
The scheme under JJM refers to various components and initiatives implemented to ensure this aim. Till now, the state has spent around Rs 31,374 crore.
As per the government claims, the tap connection has now increased from earlier 33 per cent to 88.36 per cent with the completion of 15,537 schemes.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Kudos to Maharashtra govt for not letting projects stall despite fund delays. But Rs 31,374 crore spent and still 26,000 schemes pending? Need better monitoring to prevent contractor delays and land issues. Water crisis can't wait!
Typical central-state politics affecting development work. My village in Marathwada still waits for taps while officials exchange letters. When will our leaders understand that water doesn't follow bureaucratic cycles?
The 88% connection claim seems inflated. In my district, many 'connected' households get water only 1 hour/day. JJM needs quality checks along with quantity targets. Hope the additional ₹3913 cr addresses this.
Working in rural development sector here. The 'opposition from locals' point is crucial - many villages reject pipelines fearing water meters/charges later. Govt must build trust through awareness campaigns alongside infrastructure.
Why only blame Centre? Maharashtra should audit completed works first. Many scams in water projects surfaced last year. Transparency in spending will automatically bring more funds from any government.
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