The fact that cleanliness, sanitation and access to the basics are at the core of PM Modi’s development mantra is also exemplified by the ‘Blue Flag’ tag received by eight Indian beaches, on the first attempt. In order to qualify for this tag, 33 stringent criteria relating to environmental standards, bathing water quality, and educational, safety, services and accessibility standards must be met by the beaches.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has repeatedly stressed on India’s water security, as is evident from his announcement of an allocation of Rs 3.35 lakh crore for the Jal Jeevan Mission, one of the most socially inclusive programmes of his government’s second term. A key focus of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) is the “Har Ghar Nal Se Jal” initiative, under which piped water will be supplied to almost 16 crore rural and peripheral households in India by 2024. When the scheme was launched last year, only 3.01 crore out of 19 crore rural and peri-urban households had access to tap water.
The gigantic task of taking potable water to all rural households got a further leg up with the 15th Finance Commission’s grant of Rs 30,375 crore to rural local bodies. The grant is to be utilised for two components — first, the supply of drinking water, rain water harvesting and water recycling; and, second, for sanitation and the maintenance of an open defecation-free status. Clearly, for the Modi government, big bang reforms and the provision of basic amenities and sanitation run in parallel. Work is also in full swing, with the likes of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Mizoram likely to provide piped drinking water to all rural households by 2022, two years ahead of the deadline. Goa has already earned the enviable distinction of becoming the first “Har Ghar Jal” state in the country, as it successfully provides 100% functional household tap connections (FHTCs) to 2.30 lakh rural households.
To strengthen water testing facilities, Goa is in the process of getting 14 water quality testing laboratories accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). The Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) mandates the training of five persons in every village, especially women, in using field test kits, so that water can be tested there. The state is now planning a sensor-based service delivery monitoring system to monitor the functionality of water supply, i.e., potable water in adequate quantity and of prescribed quality being provided to every rural household on a regular and long-term basis.
The “Nal Se Jal” scheme is based on a unique model under which villagers will decide for themselves about how much to pay for the water they consume. For example, large families will pay more as their consumption will be higher, while poor families or those with no earning members will pay less. Under this scheme, the Modi government will provide a minimum of 55 litres of water per person per day, which is commendable for the sheer size of the task at hand. The inspiration for this model came from Gujarat’s potable water supply scheme implemented by the Water & Sanitation Management Organisation (WASMO). The WASMO scheme helped 79% rural households in Gujarat get a potable water supply, which is the second-highest number in the country, after Goa.
In Gujarat, “paani samitis” (water committees) have been set up in every village, which decide the amount of tariff to be charged from the consumers. The final approval is given by the gram sabha. The committees comprise 10 to 15 elected members of the panchayat, of which 50% are women. The “Bank Mitras”, largely women, have made the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) one of the biggest financial inclusion schemes worldwide. Similarly, the “Nal Se Jal” scheme also deploys women in large numbers and will have villagers bear 10% of the capital cost of a project under the scheme, either in cash or in kind (in the form of labour). Once the project is completed, the villagers will get their money back and the responsibility for its maintenance and operation will be handed over to them. This decentralised model would help in giving a sense of ownership to the villagers and encourage community participation. While the Central government is there for providing most of the funds and hand-holding, it is the villagers who will decide what they want.
The fact that cleanliness, sanitation and access to the basics are at the core of PM Modi’s development mantra is also exemplified by the “Blue Flag” tag received by eight Indian beaches, on the first attempt. In order to qualify for this tag, 33 stringent criteria relating to environmental standards, bathing water quality, and educational, safety, services and accessibility standards must be met by the beaches. These beaches are now considered among the cleanest in the world and this is a recognition of India’s drive towards a clean environment and conservation.
In the last few months, Bihar has seen a massive push towards implementing PM Modi’s flagship “Har Ghar Nal Se Jal” programme. Between 1 April and 30 June 2020, Bihar has provided functional tap water connections to 4.39 lakh households, with a full year target of 1.5 crore households for the financial year 2020-21. PM Modi recently inaugurated two sewage treatment plants (STP) — one each at Beur and Karmalichak in Patna — which would treat the water before releasing it in the Ganga to prevent the river from getting polluted. PM Modi also inaugurated water supply schemes for Chhapra and Siwan where 81,000 and 58,000 people, respectively, will benefit from the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme, besides laying the foundation stone for developing the ghats along the Burhi Gandak river in Muzaffarpur.
If there is one leader who has made water management and clean environment the fulcrum of his governance, it is Modi. People are far more aware now with regard to the environment, which is evident from the fact that 5.16 crore people came together to form a 18,000 km long human chain across the state of Bihar in support of the Jal-Jeevan-Hariyali (WaterLife-Greenery) campaign recently.
Besides the “Har Ghar Jal” mission, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), the national body leading the efforts for the cleaning and rejuvenation of river Ganga, has seen significant progress with the “Namami Gange” project, with over Rs 10,000 crore, out of the budgeted Rs 20,000 crore, spent. The project is not just about cleaning but also aims at improving the ecology, conserving biodiversity, protecting wetlands and springs and enhancing India’s water security. When the project started, around 3,000 MLD (million litres per day) of sewage was being dumped into the Ganga, with a treatment capacity of less than 1,000 MLD. But now, the treatment capacity exceeds 2,000 MLD and is likely to reach 3,300 MLD in the next two years. In Uttarakhand, almost the entire required capacity has been created, with four STPs in Haridwar (68 MLD), Rishikesh (26 MLD) and Muni Ki Reti (7.5 and 5 MLD) being commissioned during the last few months, during the lockdown. Similarly, in Kanpur, Prayagraj and Patna, STPs are being completed. All along the 2,500 km stretch of the Ganga, sewage capacity is being created. This includes areas like Patna where there was almost no sewage treatment capacity earlier.
The Modi government’s idea is not to build and forget. There is a built-in component for operations and maintenance in all his projects for 15 years. This government has moved beyond the construction era and entered the performancebased era.
Besides the above, “Ganga Avalokan” was also inaugurated by PM Modi, which is the first museum on Ganga and is aimed at showcasing the biodiversity, culture and rejuvenation activities done in the river. The museum is situated in Chandi Ghat, Haridwar.
It would be suffice to say that for PM Modi, clean water is more than just a mission statement. Water scarcity affects every continent and about 2.8 billion people around the world for at least one month every year. Globally, more than 1.2 billion people also lack access to clean drinking water. Hence, PM Modi’s clarion call for water management is both timely and much needed, as India takes giant strides towards uninterrupted water sufficiency.
Sanju Verma is an economist, national spokesperson for the BJP and the bestselling author of ‘Truth & Dare: The Modi Dynamic’.