Jal Jeevan Mission

IN NEWS:

• Recently, a World Health Organization modelling study commissioned by the government has predicted that India can potentially prevent nearly 400,000 deaths from diarrhoea and save about 14 million DALYs (disability-adjusted life years) from water-related ailments if it manages to achieve universal rural coverage under the Jal Jeevan Mission.

WHAT IS THE JAL JEEVAN MISSION?

• Flagship program of the Union Government initially launched in 2019 with the motto of Har Ghar Nal Se Jal (HGNSJ) by 2024.
• The project is the restructured and upgraded version of  the National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) for the successful implementation of the UN SDG goal 6, that is to ensure access to water and sanitation for all.
•  The project is for ensuring water for all ie., ‘No one is left behind.’
• Aims to create a Jan aandolan of water as it is a community based program making it everyone’s priority through development of Village Action Plan by imbibing education, information and communication in the grass root levels by involving gram sabhas for improving the quality of life of each individual.

• Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) based on the regional coverage can be classified into two:-
  • Jal Jeevan Mission Rural.
  •  Jal Jeevan Mission Urban

SIGNFICANCE:

• Health and wellbeing:
  • JJM provides safe and adequate water to each household, which ensures hygiene and better health, thus improving quality of life.
  • For instance, as the WHO report said, ensuring safely managed drinking water for all households in the country could avert nearly 400,000 diarrhoeal disease deaths.
• Empowers women:
  • Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) helps rural residents, especially in the desert and drought-prone areas, access water and avoids the burden of walking miles to get it.
  • Thus, JJM empowers women by reducing the burden on women in collecting water, and they could utilise the new found time for productive works as it saves labour and time spent collecting water.
  • For instance, there is enough data to demonstrate that school attendance among girls was much lower during the summer when repeated travel was required due to increasing water demand.
• Environmental sustainability and climate resilience:
  • JJM will implement various sustainability measures as mandatory elements, such as recharge and reuse through grey water management, water conservation, and rainwater harvesting etc.
  • Also, JJM (urban) focuses on the rejuvenation of water bodies to augment sustainable fresh water supply and creating green spaces and sponge cities to reduce floods and enhance amenity value through an Urban Aquifer Management plan for sustainable and climate-resilient urban areas.

• Economic benefits:
  • JJM has the potential to create job opportunities, especially in rural areas, in water supply infrastructure development, operation and maintenance, and water conservation.
  • Also, the availability of water would help in the development of various sectors, including tourism, MSMEs, etc., and could lead to regional development.
  • For instance, with universal coverage of safely managed drinking water in India, almost 14 million DALYs are estimated to be averted, resulting in estimated cost savings of up to $101 billion.
• Emphasis on delivering water services:
  • In contrast to prior water supply initiatives, the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) places more emphasis on delivering water services than just constructing water supply infrastructure.
  • The Jal Jeevan Mission’s motto, "No one is left out," ensures that every household, regardless of socioeconomic position, has access to running water.
• Sustainable development goal:
  • The vision of JJM to provide universal coverage of water supply to all households through functional taps is aligned with SDG Goal 6.

CHALLENGES:

• Ground water contaminants:
  • The presence of groundwater contaminants such as fluoride, arsenic, and other heavy metals in various regions of the country will be a major challenge for the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to provide adequate water quality.
• Geographical diversities:
  • The geographical diversity of the country, ranging from high mountains to low-lying plains, coastal regions, forested regions, and desert regions, possessing different agricultural practices and traditions and an uneven natural distribution of rain with seasonal variation in water demand, poses a challenge to the effective implementation of the JJM.
• Huge capital investment:
  • While there are several methods mentioned in the implementation guidelines of JJM for sustainable water conservation, huge capital investments are required for their implementation.
• Water supply and distribution challenges:
  • JJM has to overcome the existing challenges in water supply and distribution, such as high leakages and losses, high non-revenue water (NRW), inequity in distribution, and poor operation and maintenance of water supply infrastructure.
    • The difference between the amount of water put into the distribution system and the amount of water billed to consumers is called "Non-revenue Water" (NRW).
• State subject:
  • Water being a state subject, there needs to be better coordination with national and state-level institutions for effective implementation of the mission.

WAY FORWARD:

• Use of technology:
  • Engage more advanced technology as deployment of sensor-based IoT systems for measurement & monitoring of water supply, and for testing and treatment of water.
• Local participation:
  • Encourage the local participation through certification programs and appropriate appreciation for the participation should be inculcated for the same.
• Public-private partnership:
  • Engage the private sector under the public-private partnership model to promote infrastructure expansion and manage and operate drinking water services.
• Set up a regulatory body restricted only for the purpose of ensuring water security.

CONCLUSION:

• As the demand of water rises due to rise in population and economic usage, the need for effective and efficient water usage and conservation is essential for environmental sustainability and for the well-being of each human being. Jal Jeevan Mission addresses the long term sustainability concern as well present need for water security of the Indian population. Also, the grass root level model of the program and intensive information communication and education among the communities is a welcome change.

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q. “The Jal Jeevan Mission addresses long-term sustainability concerns as well as the present need for water security”. Discuss.