New Delhi, March 10 The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission up to December 2028, with an enhanced budget of Rs 8.7 lakh crore, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
The project, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019, aims to provide safe and adequate drinking water through tap connections to all households in rural India.
"The Cabinet approved the Ministry of Jal Shakti's proposal to restructure and reorient the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) from infrastructure creation to service delivery, supported by drinking water governance and an institutional ecosystem for sustainable rural piped potable water supply," the minister said at a press conference.
To restructure JJM, with a focus on structural reforms, the Cabinet has approved an increase in the total budget to Rs. 8.69 lakh crore, with a total central assistance of Rs. 3.59 lakh crore, compared to the Rs. 2.08 lakh crore approved in 2019-20.
A uniform national digital framework called "Sujalam Bharat" will be established, under which every village will be assigned a unique Sujal Gaon or Service Area ID, digitally mapping the complete drinking water supply system from source to tap.