New Delhi: Government approves increase in expenditure on Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0 by ₹1.51 trillion and cleared new road and rail projects worth ₹8,300 crore in the cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
The government also greenlit the supplementary budget for the extension of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway to the upcoming Jewar Airport in Uttar Pradesh and approved full international status for Madurai Airport in Tamil Nadu, according to a cabinet statement.
The Union Cabinet and its Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) have given approval to increase the expenditure on the Jal Jeevan 2.0 mission to ensure drinking water to every rural household. ₹8.7 trillion by 2028. The Centre’s share will ₹3.59 trillion, more than ₹2.08 trillion approved in FY20, while the rest will be borne by states, the cabinet said.
The second iteration of the scheme will involve restructuring that will focus on water supply from the infrastructure that is already in place as well as community involvement to make good use of water resources, said Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister for Railways, Information and Broadcasting and Electronics and Information Technology.
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The Jal Jeevan Mission has been approved for 2019-2024 and 12.6 million households have been provided with functional water tap connections so far, Vaishnaw said, adding that separate reform agreements will be signed with states in the next three months.
“The reforms will address the operation and maintenance of the infrastructure that has been established, involve local communities, find new sources of water in places where the population is growing; in a way that will ensure the sustainability of the mission,” Vaishnaw said.
There will be digital mapping of all water resources, including the infrastructure set up under the mission, Vaishnaw said. “To this end, a unified national digital framework viz “Sujalam Bharat”will be introduced under which each village will be allotted a unique Sujal Gaon / Service Area ID, digitally mapping the entire drinking water supply system from the source to the tap,” the cabinet statement said.
In addition, the government will work to increase community involvement in the restructuring of the mission.
“The success of the program will largely depend on how effectively it is implemented at the ground level,” said Jitendra Meena, a professor at Delhi University. “While the scheme is primarily focused on providing tap water to rural households, the government should also consider creating infrastructure to ensure the availability of water for livestock, as the livelihoods of many rural families are closely linked to animal husbandry.”
Railway, road projects
The CCEA also approved the expansion ₹689.24 crore in the budget to create a new road connecting the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway with the upcoming Jewar Airport, taking the total budget to ₹3,631 crore, according to its statement. The increased budget will be used to build an overhead road with a length of 11 km out of a total of 31 km.
CCEA has also green lighted four lane 80.45 km expressway from Badnawar-Petlawad-Thandla-Timarwani section in Central India at a total capital cost of Rs. ₹3,839.42 million crowns.
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“The approved corridor will provide connectivity between Ujjain and Timrawani on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway (DME). The primary purpose of the proposed four-lane project corridor is to improve travel efficiency and is expected to reduce travel time by about one hour,” a CCEA statement said.
Two railway projects in West Bengal are worth it ₹4,474 crore also got CCEA approval on Tuesday. These are Sainthia-Pakur and Santragachi-Kharagpur fourth lines.
Covering five districts in West Bengal and Jharkhand, these projects will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by around 192 km, CCEA said in a statement.
The Union Cabinet also approved the declaration of Madurai Airport in the temple city of Tamil Nadu as an international airport.
“Upgrading Madurai Airport to international status would enhance regional connectivity, promote trade and boost economic development in the region. The airport’s potential to attract international pilgrims and businesses is in line with the historical importance of the city,” the cabinet said.
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Madurai airport was earlier a customs notified airport with limited international flights to destinations like Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Colombo, Vaishnaw said.
