Jal Jeevan Mission to revive urban water bodies
Jal Jeevan Mission, the flagship programme of Union Government aims to provide tap water connections to all rural homes of the country by 2024. The mission aims to improve the lives of people and bring ‘ease of living’. In the Budget 2021-22, the Government has announced the launch of Jal Jeevan Mission(Urban).
Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs
Objective: To provide universal coverage of water supply to all households in all 4,378 statutory towns, through functional taps.
Background of Jal Jeevan Mission
- The urban water supply mission announced in the Budget would include rejuvenation of water bodies as well as 20% of supply from reused water.
- There was an estimated gap of 2.68 crore urban household tap connections that the Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban) [JJMU] would seek to bridge in all 4,378 statutory towns.
- The Mission would also aim to bridge the gap of 2.64 crore sewer connections in the 500 cities under the existing Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).
- The mission would include rejuvenation of water bodies to boost the sustainable freshwater supply and creation of green spaces.
Features of the Jal Jeevan Mission
- It will rejuvenate the water bodies to facilitate sustainable fresh water supply and the creation of green spaces.
- It will promote a circular economy of waterthrough the development of city water balance plan in each city. The plan will focus on recycling/reuse of treated sewage water and water conservation. 20% of water demand is to be met by reused water.
- Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) campaign is proposed. It will spread awareness among the masses about the conservation of water.
- Pey Jal Survekshanwill be conducted in cities. It will ascertain the equitable distribution of water, reuse of wastewater, and mapping of water bodies
- It is proposed to leverage the latest global technologies in the field of water.
- The mission has mandated that cities having a million-plus population will take up PPP projects. These projects shall constitute a minimum of 10% of their total project fund allocation.
