Over 80% Of Rural Households In India Now Have Tap Water Connections

The government said on Monday that over 80% of rural households in India now have potable tap water connections.

“As of 16 July, out of 193.6 million rural households, more than 156.7 million (80.93%) households have tap water supply,” stated V Somanna, Minister of State for Jal Shakti, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

The Centre launched the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in August 2019 to provide every rural household with safe tap water. At the start of the mission, only 32.3 million (16.7%) rural households had tap connections. Since then, states and Union Territories have added 124.3 million tap water connections.

The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation conducts independent third-party assessments of tap connections under JJM.

The Functionality Assessment 2022 found that 86% of households had working connections. Among them, 85% received water in adequate quantity, 80% got water regularly, and 87% received water of prescribed quality. The 2024 functionality assessment is underway.

The Centre regularly reviews the mission with state governments. It holds meetings, workshops, and video conferences to push states to speed up implementation. Officials also conduct field visits to assist states.

The minister told the Rajya Sabha that district- and village-level data on rural tap water connections is available to the public.

He added that the Centre amended the mission’s operational guidelines on 21 June 2022. The changes came after states sought support due to rising raw material costs caused by Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

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