Jal Jeevan Mission: 59% of rural households in India now have tap water connections

The Indian Government, in partnership with the state governments, has provided tap water connections to around 59% of rural households in the country under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)-Har Ghar Jal program, according to the latest official data.

The JJM-Har Ghar Jal program was launched in August 2019 with the aim of providing assured potable water through tap water connections to every rural household in the country. At the time of the program's launch, only 17% of rural households had tap water connections.

However, as of March 20, 2023, additional 8.26 crore rural households have been provided with tap water connections under the program, taking the total number of rural households with tap water supply to 11.49 crore out of 19.43 crore rural households in the country.

The information was provided by Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti Prahlad Singh Patel in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Thursday.

Five states—Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, and Telangana—as well as three UTs—A&N Islands, Puducherry, and Dadra Nagar Haveli & Daman Diu—have so far been designated as 'Har Ghar Jal' (100% coverage) States and UTs respectively. By 2024, the remaining States and UTs are also expected to have tap water connections.

According to MoS Patel, as water is a state subject, it is the duty of the state governments to plan, develop, carry out, and approve water supply projects. The central government supports the state government’s efforts with financial and technical aid but the operation and maintenance of the water supply infrastructure created under the program fall under the ambit of the respective state governments.

To assess the functionality of tap water connections provided under the program, the Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation conducts an annual assessment through an independent third-party agency based on standard statistical sampling.

During the last assessment conducted from February to April 2022, it was found that 86% of households had working tap connections, out of which 85% were getting water in adequate quantity, 80% were getting water regularly as per the water supply schedule, and 87% of households were receiving water as per the prescribed water quality standards.