111 million families in India's villages still await potable tap water

A third of villages don't have piped supply infra, another third does, but tap provision work to households hasn't yet begun. Govt has promised to spend Rs 50,000 cr to expedite the scheme

The government of India revamped the National Rural Drinking Water Programme into Jal Jeevan Mission in 2019, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Independence Day, the target to provide tap drinking water to all households in the country by 2024. 

The scheme gathered pace after the announcement. The number of households with functional drinking water taps, which had grown from 22 million to 40 million in six years to 2019-20, has now grown to about 80 million in August 2021. The doubling period has shrunk from six years to 18 months. 

This achievement notwithstanding, the target from now on