One of the key announcements by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget 2025-26 speech on February 1, 2025 was the extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission until 2028, with an enhanced total outlay.
The finance minister stated that since 2019, 150 million households — representing 80 per cent of India’s rural population — have gained access to potable tap water connections. To achieve 100 per cent coverage, the Jal Jeevan Mission has been extended to 2028.
Is this good news or bad news for the nation? Let’s analyse three key points from the finance minister’s Budget speech.
First, the finance minister claimed that the mission has been extended with an “enhanced total outlay”. But when one analyses the budget documents, it shows that the total budget outlay for 2024-25 was about Rs 70,163 crore. This year, the outlay stands at Rs 67,000 crore — Rs 3,163 crore less than last year’s allocation.
Second, the Jal Jeevan Mission was launched in August 2019 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the ambitious goal of providing tap water to every rural household by 2024. At the time of the mission’s inception, only 16 per cent of rural households had tap water connections. According to current data from the mission, nearly 80 per cent of households have been connected. Does this mean the mission is being extended until 2028 to bridge the remaining 20 per cent gap?
Third, the finance minister stated that the mission’s focus will now be on the quality of infrastructure, as well as the operation and management of rural piped water supply schemes through “Jan Bhagidari” (people’s participation). Separate memoranda of understanding (MoUs) will be signed with states and Union Territories to ensure sustainability and citizen-centric water service delivery.
This is surprising, as source sustainability has always been a core principle of the Jal Jeevan Mission. For instance, for the first time, the mission introduced measures to manage greywater from kitchens, washing areas and bathrooms. It also emphasised water conservation, rainwater harvesting and community participation.
Nevertheless, to ensure that the mission is successful this time around, the government needs to take source sustainability seriously. Media reports show failure to supply clean and regular supply to the areas where tap connections have been established. Community participation also requires a good capacity building both at the grassroots level and administrative levels.
The 16th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in December 2024, recognised that loss of soil moisture and desertification as burning issues in the coming days and called for prioritising preservation of waterbodies and rainwater harvesting. This means the Jal Jeevan Mission must achieve its goals without further delay.