Clean Drinking Water

All states, UTs achieve over 50% tap water coverage in rural areas: Data

All states and Union territories have more than 50 per cent coverage of tap water connections in rural households, according to official data. Under the Har Ghar Jal scheme, all rural households will be provided with tap water connections by the year-end. As of now, all states and Union territories (UTs) have more than 50 per cent coverage of tap water connections in rural households with 11 states and UTs having 100 per cent coverage. The states and UTs with 100 per cent coverage of tap water connections in rural households are Goa; Andaman & Nicobar Islands; Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu; Haryana; Telangana; Puducherry; Gujarat; Punjab; Himachal Pradesh; Arunachal Pradesh; and Mizoram. The least coverage has been recorded in West Bengal at 52.30 per cent, Rajasthan at 52.91 per cent, Kerala at 53.62 per cent, Jharkhand at 54.26 per cent, and Madhya Pradesh at 64.84 per cent, according to the data. Out of a total of 19,33,38,234 (19.33 crore) rural households, ...

In 2020, only 1 in 3 in LMICs could access safe drinking water: Study

Only one in three people in low-and middle-income countries had access to safe drinking water in 2020, a new analysis of 135 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has estimated. Using models, researchers from ETH Zurich, Switzerland, combined household surveys with global Earth observation, including satellite, air, and land data, on human, geographic, and environmental factors. They, thus, created detailed maps of safe drinking water use across 135 LMICs. Their analysis is published in the journal Science. The authors estimated that despite 88 per cent of the people living in the LMICs using an improved drinking water source, defined as having "the potential to deliver safe water," almost half the population were estimated to be exposed to faecal contamination. As such, more than 4.4 billion people in poorer countries lack safe drinking water. This is roughly twice the estimate of 2 billion people in 2020 given by the World Health Organization and United Nations (UN) Children's

Budget 2024: Mere 0.5% boost to department of drinking water and sanitation

The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation has received a budgetary allocation of Rs 77,390.68 crores for the fiscal year 2024-2025. This figure reflects a minimal increase of only 0.5 per cent from the revised estimate of Rs 77,032.65 crore announced in budget 2023-2024. A substantial portion of this financial year's allotment for the Drinking Water and Sanitation department is directed towards the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), which received Rs 69,926.65 crore, a marginal rise from the revised estimate of Rs 69,846.31 crore in 2023-2024. This flagship programme aims to provide functional household tap connections to every rural household by 2024, focusing on ensuring regular and adequate water supply. Additionally, the Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee National Institute of Water and Sanitation (SPM-NIWAS) has been allocated Rs 95 crore, a huge rise from the Rs 3 crore it got in the last revised estimate. The Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin), which focuses on maintaining Open Defecation

20 students fall ill after drinking water from school tank in Jharkhand

At least 20 students fell ill after drinking water from a tank in their school in Jharkhand's Latehar district on Saturday, an official said. When they were taken to a local health centre, doctors said the condition of the children was stable. The incident happened at Upgraded Primary School at Duru, around 80 km from the state capital Ranchi. After having their meal, the children went to drink water from the tank in the school. After some time, several students started vomiting and complained of uneasiness, a teacher of the school said. Some students said there was a foul smell in the water. The students were brought to the local community health centre where they were examined. Doctors said their condition was stable. The Chandwa Block Development Officer Chandan Kumar said the water sample had been taken for examination. Kumar also visited the community health centre to enquire about the health conditions of the students.

K'taka bans use of drinking water for car washing, gardening, imposes fine

As per the Bengaluru district administration, for up to 5 km, a 6000-litre water tanker will cost Rs 600, an 8000-litre water tanker will cost Rs 700, and a 12,000-litre water tanker will cost Rs 1000

Mumbai plans to build Rs 4,120 crore treatment plant amid water woes

The water treatment plant will be one of the largest in the world in terms of capacity, the company said

First 'Pey Jal Survekshan' survey has covered 485 cities, says govt

The Union housing and urban affairs ministry on Thursday said the first "Pey Jal Survekshan" survey has covered 485 cities and captured more than 5.21 lakh household responses. It said 46 cities or municipalities had a 100-per cent pass rate of samples taken from households and water treatment plants. The results of the survey and awards for the best-performing cities and states would be released on March 5 at a ceremony to be attended by President Droupadi Murmu. "Direct observation and assessments were carried out in 830 water treatment facilities, 941 water bodies, 1,044 used water treatment facilities and 2,005 parks were visited for assessing availability of rainwater harvesting structures," the ministry said in a statement. Elaborating on the various categories under the "Pey Jal Survekshan Awards", Secretary in the ministry Manoj Joshi said based on the survey scores for access and coverage, and water quality and sustainability parameters, nine awards will be given to cities

India's water transformation: $250 bn investment fuels decade of progress

Minister Shekhawat revealed that Namami Gange has been acknowledged as one of the top 10 World Restoration Flagships by the UN Convention of Biodiversity conference COP15

Har Ghar Jal initiative: Can some states come in the way of 100% coverage?

The Jal Shakti ministry's data shows the target is within striking distance: 73.57 per cent of the households have already been covered by this flagship scheme of the Narendra Modi government

Kashmir Valley endures unusual, severe dry spell amid harsh winter

Reduced snowfall and precipitation levels have prompted worries about potential water scarcity and its far-reaching impacts on the environment and daily life

Arsenic and fluoride in groundwater: NGT issues notices to 24 states, 4 UTs

The National Green Tribunal has issued notices to 24 states and four Union Territories in a matter regarding the presence of arsenic and fluoride in groundwater. The green panel observed that the presence of these metals or chemicals are "very serious" and requires "urgent preventive and protective steps". The panel was hearing a matter in which it had taken suo motu (on its own) cognisance of a media report that highlighted the presence of arsenic and fluoride beyond permissible limits in groundwater in some pockets of various states and Union Territories. The report stated that arsenic was detected in groundwater in parts of 230 districts across 25 states while fluoride was found in some pockets of 469 districts in 27 states, the tribunal noted in a recent order. A bench of Judicial Member Justice Sudhir Agarwal and Expert Member A Senthil Vel said the Central Ground Water Authority had submitted a report in which it admitted the presence of arsenic and fluoride in the districts

California approves new rules for turning wastewater into drinking water

When a toilet is flushed in California, the water can end up in a lot of places: An ice skating rink near Disneyland, ski slopes around Lake Tahoe, farmland in the Central Valley. And coming soon kitchen faucets. California regulators on Tuesday approved new rules to let water agencies recycle wastewater and put it right back into the pipes that carry drinking water to homes, schools and businesses. It's a big step for a state that has struggled for decades to secure reliable sources of drinking water for its more than 39 million residents. And it signals a shift in public opinion on a subject that as recently as two decades ago prompted backlash that scuttled similar projects. Since then, California has been through multiple extreme droughts, including the most recent one that scientists say was the driest three-year period on record and left the state's reservoirs at dangerously low levels. Water is so precious in California. It is important that we use it more than once, said

How to choose the best water purifier for your home: Things to know

To choose the best water purifier, you need to know the quality of water at your home, besides several other important factors

Bisleri to scale up manufacturing, strategic distribution network

Packaged drinking water company Bisleri International is scaling up its manufacturing and strategic distribution network for easier and cost-effective placement of products and market gains, its Vice-Chairperson Jayanti Khan Chauhan said on Thursday. The company, currently, has 128 manufacturing plants and is looking to increase it to 150. The expansion would be through plants owned by Chauhan promoted company and its co-packers, which are exclusive to Bisleri. Bisleri is also expanding its offerings into CSD (carbonated soft drinks), premiumise through the brand Vedica Himalayan Spring Water, besides its mainstay of packaged drinking water business with an innovative approach. When asked about the outlook, Chauhan told PTI: "We are definitely going to increase our distribution, scale up on distribution and manufacturing for CSD for Bisleri. This strategic placement of manufacturing units and distribution networks will make it easier and cost-effective for us to get our products to

'PM took initiative to ensure every rural household gets 55 ltr of water'

Union Minister Prahlad Patel on Friday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the initiative to ensure every rural household in the country gets 55 litres of drinking water per person per day. Speaking at a gathering in Sihora here as part of the Bharatiya Janata Party's 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra', he said the PM also took the initiative to link Ken and Betwa rivers to ensure water supply to people in rural areas. "A survey report of 1950 said 18 per cent of the world's population resides in India, while only 4 per cent of drinking water was available. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took this initiative to ensure every household in rural areas gets potable water," he said. The Union government, in partnership with states, is implementing the Jal Jeevan Mission to make provision of potable tap water supply to every rural household of the country at the service level of 55 litre per capita per day by 2024. The Jan Ashirwad Yatra mass outreach initiative of the BJP, whi

130 mn rural households get tap water connections under Jal Jeevan Mission

Goa, Telangana, Haryana, Gujarat, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have reported 100 per cent coverage

No state has below 30% household coverage of tap water connection: Official

No state has less than 30 per cent household coverage of tap water connection in rural India and there is no habitation in the country which does not have portable drinking water at least to the extent needed for cooking and drinking, a senior official said. Addressing the 16th Civil Services Day, Secretary, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation Vini Mahajan said more than 8.54 crore rural households with more than 40 crore people have benefitted under the programme. "This is more than the population of the US, almost twice that of Brazil and Nigeria," she added. "No state has below 30 per cent household coverage of tap water connection in rural India. No habitation in country which does not have portable drinking water at least to the extent of 8-10 lpcd needed for cooking and drinking," Mahajan said. According to the Jal Jeevan Mission data, West Bengal has the lowest coverage of tap water connections at 32 per cent among states while Lakshadweep has the lowest coverage amo

Kerala lags in providing tap water to rural households: Union Min Shekhawat

Kerala is much behind the national average in providing fully functional tap water connections to rural households, Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, said here on Wednesday. The minister, after meeting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and reviewing the progress made in the area with the officials, said the state needs "more pace, more synergy, and more spending" in the key sector to achieve the central government's ambitious target of providing clean drinking water for every household by 2024. Addressing a press conference, Shekhawat said the pan-India average is more than 60 per cent and "we were able to provide more than 8.5 crore connections over the period of the last three years, but the state of Kerala is much behind the national average." Kerala has so far provided tap water connections to around 47 per cent of households. The minister said that though the total number of houses in the state is 70 lakhs, only 34.17 lakh houses have piped water ...

Setting up clinics to assess drinking water quality in coastal areas: CMFRI

A Central government institute on Wednesday decided to set up water clinics in the coastal region of Kerala to ensure regular and large-scale water quality checks in the wake of a recent study that found an alarming level of E coli contamination in the Vembanad lake. Some strains of the E coli bacteria can cause serious food poisoning. The ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) said it would set up water clinics in the coastal region of the state to maintain the quality of drinking water resources. "At a time when climate change continues to fuel storm surges and resulting coastal flooding, the proposed clinics are aimed at assessing the quality of drinking water resources in coastal communities," said Dr A Gopalakrishnan, Director of CMFRI. He was speaking at an awareness workshop on climate change among the fishermen residing in Chellanam and Puthuvypu in Ernakulam district held at CMFRI. "The new initiative is in line with the 'One Health' concept that aims to

Water charges collected belong solely to the community: Drinking water secy

In a Q&A, Vini Mahajan says the Jal Jeevan Mission is now moving at a frenetic pace that they are taking it one day at a time