8.38 lakh rural households of Himachal Pradesh provided tap water under Jal Jeevan Mission: Govt

Union Minister of State for Food Processing Industries and  Jal Shakti  Prahlad Singh Patel has said 8.38 lakh  rural households of  Himachal Pradesh have been provided tap water under Jal Jeevan Mission. 

Addressing a press conference in Shimla yesterday, Union Minister Prahlad Singh Patel said that 4 districts, 24 blocks, 2,266 gram panchayats and 14,464 villages of the state have become 'Har Ghar Jal'.  He further informed that out of the remaining 18,150 villages, work is going on in 2,763 villages, while work is yet to start in 923 villages.

He further stated that the process of formation of remaining 85  village water committees and preparation of 210 village action plans is to be done on priority basis. He said village action plans should be prepared as per the guidelines and should include components like convergence, water quality measures, gray water management, animal feed



etc.

The Union Minister said  a system related to gray water management will have to be developed in the state. The possibility of running a gray water management plan should be explored in 'Har Ghar Jal' villages and large villages with more than 70% coverage. 

He stressed on the need to focus on conducting IEC activities at the state, district and village level to create awareness among the people about the program and encourage community contribution for daily operation and maintenance.

The Union Minister said the objective of Jal Jeevan Mission announced by the Prime Minister on 15th August, 2019 is to provide tap water to every rural household of the country by 2024. This mission is being implemented with the participation of the states. A total provision of Rs 3.60 lakh crore has been made for the mission, of which the central government's share is Rs 2.08 lakh crore.