THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of Jal Shakti, has urged the state government to expedite the project implementation and fund utilisation of Jal Jeevan Mission.
Shekhawat, who was in Thiruvananthapuram, called on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan where they reviewed the progress of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in the state.
The Union minister informed that Kerala has attained only 47 per cent coverage in JJM implying that it has so far only benefited 70 lakh rural population in the state till December 2022. JJM is a Centrally assisted programme aimed at providing safe and adequate drinking water through individual functional household tap connections by 2024 to all households in rural India.
“The hurdles seen in the state to achieve the target are due to issues related to land acquisition and bottlenecks. There are eight to nine states which are lagging behind including Kerala. These states have demanded the extension of deadline to implement JJM. But since it’s a Union cabinet’s decision, it cannot be extended,” said Shekhawat.
He also informed that, apart from Kerala, the other states which have achieved less than 50 per cent coverage are Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The Union minister added that Bihar and Maharashtra have achieved nearly cent percent coverage.
The finance department had observed that the agencies, Kerala Water Authority, Jalanidhi and Groundwater Department, entrusted with the implementation of JJM works had failed to meet the annual targets on time.