BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday launched 24X7 pipe drinking water projects in five towns and 149 wards of 13 other urban centres on the occasion of third year completion of the ‘drink from tap’ mission in the state. Around 12.3 lakh people will benefit from the initiative of the state government.
The CM said the drink from tap facility will now be available in Rairangpur, Biramitrapur, Rajgangpur, Champua and Nimapara towns. He said about 1.8 lakh people of these towns will benefit from the projects. Similarly, 10.5 lakh people of 149 wards in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Rourkela, Sundargarh, Vyasanagar, Khurda, Jatni, Hinjili, Barbil, Keonjhar, Anandpur and Joda will also have access to pipe drinking water.
Urban Development Minister Usha Devi said the projects after completion will benefit poor and economically weaker sections of people. Executive director of International Water Association Kalanithy Vairavmoorthy said that drink from tap is a unique mission which ensures access of drinking water to all sections of people. Vairavmoorthy said he never thought this would be possible within his lifetime. Use of advanced technology has made the project successful, he added.
‘Sujal - Drink from Tap Mission’, an initiative under the 5T model of governance, was launched in 2020 in Bhubaneswar and Puri benefitting 1.8 lakh people and later extended to 15 more urban areas, where over 15 lakh people reaped its benefits.
Puri was the first town where the drink from tap facility was launched in 2021. In Gopalpur too, the second city in the state, 100 per cent of people have access to water from the drink from tap system. In December 2022, drinking water was supplied round-the-clock through taps installed in households, benefitting 5.55 lakh people in 19 cities and towns of the state.