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Jal Shakti Ministry
India is ready to collaborate with other countries on water conservation efforts, Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil told the global leaders here during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. Participating in a discussion here during the five-day summit ending on Friday, Patil also listed out the sustainable water management practices adopted by the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India is ready to share them for the benefit of the world community, he told the global leaders present at the meeting. "India is prepared for collaborations on potential water management issues," he said and called upon the world to engage in water conservation efforts, highlighting the challenges that need attention. He also urged all nations to come forward for equitable water management. He reiterated India's commitment and readiness to promote global cooperation and initiate transformative discussions to ensure a water-secure future. "Prime Minister Modi takes this issue very seriously
The Jal Shakti ministry has set its sights on 2025 to achieve the ambitious targets of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) and Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (SBM-G) after falling short of the 2024 deadline to provide tap water connections to all rural households. The ministry also aims to ensure universal Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus status for villages while advancing ecological restoration under the Namami Gange Programme. Over 15.37 crore rural households out of a total of 19.36 crore have been equipped with tap water connections under the Jal Jeevan Mission. However, around four crore households remain uncovered. Jal Shakti Minister C R Paatil expressed optimism about achieving full coverage, emphasising his ministry's continuous coordination with lagging states and Union territories. "All the four crore connections are at some level of completion, and though it is a state subject, we have urged all states and Union territories to accelerate their efforts to ensure 100 per cent ...
India held high-level meetings with Tanzania and Zimbabwe to enhance collaboration in water resource management and development, Jal Shakti Minister C R Paatil said. During his interaction with the delegation from Zimbabwe, led by Deputy Minister V P Haritatos, at the ongoing National Water Week-2024 here, Paatil said discussions were held on strengthening water management and driving agricultural reforms in the southern African country. "Haritatos emphasised the importance of enhancing Indian investments in Zimbabwe's water sector, highlighting the pivotal role Indian companies like WAPCOS can play," Paatil said in a post. "We assured the delegation of India's commitment to providing comprehensive technical assistance and fostering cooperation to address Zimbabwe's water-related challenges," he said. Ensuring food security and supporting sustainable growth through innovative solutions in irrigation system design, improved water supply and enhancing irrigation efficiency were key .
Achieving sustainable water management cannot be done by governments alone, a senior Jal Shakti ministry official said on Monday while emphasising the need for cooperation from industries, academia and civil society on the matter. A day ahead of the start of the eighth edition of India Water Week, Secretary of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Debashree Mukherjee said, "It is an effort to bring together multiple stakeholders, to look at, learn from each other and also try and find solutions to the issues facing us." The event, held once every two years, brings together various stakeholders from diverse fields to discuss sustainable water management. This year, the event will start on September 17 and continue till September 20. "This year, the theme is 'Partnerships and Cooperation for Inclusive Water Development and Management,' which underscores a fundamental truth that achieving sustainable water management cannot be done by governments alone. Water needs
Jal Shakti Minister CR Paatil called for the widespread adoption of reuse of treated waste water during a meeting of the Empowered Task Force (ETF) on Ganga rejuvenation on Wednesday. The meeting, which was chaired by Paatil, saw the participation of senior officials from the Ministry of Jal Shakti and key ministries, along with state representatives from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, according to an official statement. Director General of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), Rajeev Kumar Mital, delivered a detailed presentation on the progress since the last ETF meeting, focusing on several critical areas such as the reuse of treated water, biodiversity conservation, and the remediation of polluted river stretches. The session also addressed the River Action Plan and natural farming initiatives to rejuvenate the river. Paatil underscored the need for close coordination among stakeholders to ensure timely completion of projects under the Nam
The AAP MLAs have written a letter to Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Paatil urging his intervention to solve the water crisis faced by the national capital amid the prevailing intense heatwave. Calling the situation "very critical", AAP's chief whip in Delhi Assembly Dilip Pandey on Saturday said the Yamuna water issue was an inter-state issue that required coordination of the Jal Shakti Ministry. Pandey said that in the letter from the AAP MLAs, time has been sought to meet the minister for a discussion on the matter. The AAP leader also said that instead of indulging in politics, all parties should work for a solution to resolve the water crisis and provide respite to the people of Delhi. "The entire matter is related to intervene state coordination and without Centre's intervention no solution will come out," Pandey told a press conference. The ruling AAP has accused the BJP ruled Haryana of stopping Delhi's share of Yamuna Water. Delhi's Water Minister Atishi has claimed that wa
Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Sunday said drinking water facilities have reached 72 per cent households in the country and the remaining will be completed by December 2024. When the Jal Jeevan Mission started in 2019, a little over 16 per cent of the households had access to drinking water facilities, Singh told a group of visiting journalists from Assam here. He emphasised that the implementation of the scheme is the responsibility of the state governments, and each state faces different geographical challenges and availability of water resources ranges from surplus to scarce. "We had prepared a guideline in consultation with the state governments and implementation of the scheme was done according to it", he said. Despite the challenges faced during two years of COVID, "I can say with pride that drinking water facilities has reached 72 per cent of the households", the Union minister said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pledged that each household will b
Making substantial progress towards the government's ambitious Jal Jeevan Mission, approximately 72 per cent of rural households now have access to tap water connections, according to official data. In 2024, the Jal Shakti ministry faces the crucial target of achieving the 100 per cent coverage of tap water connection to every rural household -- a commitment made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019. A senior official expressed confidence that the government will reach the 100 per cent coverage goal by the end of the coming year. However, challenges persist in states like Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and West Bengal, where tap water connection coverage in rural households remains below 50 per cent, the data says. While nine states and Union Territories have already achieved 100 per cent coverage, the focus remains on extending this essential service to every corner of the nation. Simultaneously, the ministry's commitment to making villages Open Defecation Free Plus (ODF Plus) by next
Arsenic has been detected in groundwater in parts of 230 districts in 25 states and fluoride in 469 districts in 27 states, Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti Bishweswar Tudu informed the Rajya Sabha on Monday. In a written reply, the minister said that the ground water contamination reported by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) is mostly geogenic in nature and does not show significant change over the years. The CGWB under the Ministry of Jal Shakti conducts regular monitoring and assessment of groundwater quality including ground water contamination of Arsenic and Fluoride. The board has carried out various studies in collaboration with other institutions, he said. These studies indicate the occurrence of arsenic and fluoride in ground water beyond permissible limits -- set by the Bureau of Indian Standards -- for human consumption in isolated pockets in various states and Union Territories, he said. Arsenic has been reported in parts of 230 districts in 25 states and ...
Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Monday hit out at Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah accusing him of spreading falsehood and misinformation with regard to the various water projects including the Mekedatu balancing reservoir across the Cauvery river. Shekhawat reacted to Siddaramaiah's statement on Saturday alleging that the Narendra Modi-led government did not address Karnataka's water issues despite scanty rainfall. Alleging that projects like Mekedatu and the Mahadayi River are pending Centre's approval, Siddaramaiah charged, "Do you want to inflict more thirst on Kannadigas, dear Prime Minister?" Lashing out at Siddaramaiah, Shekhawat said in a statement on 'X': "We know it is tradition for Congress to spread false rumour & misinformation. But it isn't becoming of a CM to wreak havoc in people's lives by doing so." Regarding the Mekedatu project, the Minister said the discussion on the Detailed Project Report (DPR) was included as an agenda item during
About 4.4 lakh or 75 per cent of India's villages have achieved the open defecation free-plus status, Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said on Saturday. An 'ODF Plus' village is one which has sustained its Open Defecation Free (ODF) status along with implementing either solid or liquid waste management systems. Addressing media persons, Shekhawat said over 4.43 lakh villages so far have declared themselves ODF Plus, which is a significant step towards achieving the goals of the second phase of the Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin by 2024-25. He added that all villages in 14 states and Union Territories (UT) have achieved ODF Plus Status, of which four have been declared 'ODF Plus Model'. The top performing states and UTs which have 100 per cent ODF Plus villages are Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra Nagar Haveli, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Ladakh, Puducherry, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Tripura. Of these, Andaman and ...
More than 50,000 water bodies have been rejuvenated under the Mission Amrit Sarovar, Rural Development Ministry said on Wednesday. The mission, launched as a part of the celebration of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 24 last year, aimed at rejuvenating at least 75 water bodies in every district of the country with the target to build 50,000 'Amrit Sarovar' by August 15, 2023. The ministry said the target has been achieved ahead of schedule, adding, "So far, 50,071 'Amrit Sarovar' have been completed". To achieve the resolution of rainwater conservation and harvesting through Mission Amrit Sarovar, the Rural Development Ministry worked as the nodal ministry. From renovating the water bodies which had reached the verge of extinction to the construction of new water bodies, a detailed action plan was prepared, it said. "The target of 50,000 'Amrit Sarovar' could be achieved ahead of time because of the efforts made through 'whole of government' approac
The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) said on Monday that it plans to hire experts to train its staff on providing better customer services. The utility will also conduct a special drive to disconnect connections of commercial and government consumers who have defaulted on their bills. During a meeting with senior officials, DJB Vice Chairman Somnath Bharti emphasised the need for DJB officers and employees to provide better customer satisfaction. He suggested that they undergo training on the lines of multinational firms to improve the way they interact with consumers. "The DJB will avail the services of experts for training the employees. In the training, the DJB employees will be taught ways to behave better with customers," a statement said. Bharti also directed officers to take strict action against commercial and government users who have defaulted on bills. The defaulting consumers with commercial connections owe Rs 18,000 crore to the DJB. Bharti also said that centralised monitoring