Though TDP has emerged as the key partner for the survival of Narendra Modi-led government at the center, it has been failing to get sufficient support to achieve the goal of the Jal Jeevan Mission in the state. This scheme is aimed at providing uninterrupted safe drinking water to all the people.
Despite the hype about this scheme, in practice the work is going at a snail’s pace due to the attitude adopted by the Central Government. The state has asked the Center for Rs 70,000 crore under this scheme, but only Rs 2,407 crore has been allocated in the latest budget.
Officials estimate that if funds are allocated in this way, it will take at least 30 years to achieve the goals of the scheme. Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan discussed these proposals with the Central Government during his visit to Delhi in November. He personally submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
After this meeting, he also announced that the Prime Minister was positive about releasing the necessary funds under this scheme. He himself got the proposals prepared and submitted them to the Center in accordance with his discussions with the Prime Minister.
With Pawan’s personal appeal and the Prime Minister’s positive response, the government has high hopes for the funds.
However, the Union Budget (2025-26) has allocated Rs 67,000 crore for the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)/National Rural Drinking Water Mission (NRDWM). The state has received estimates from the Center that only Rs 2,407.32 crore of this amount is likely to be received. Officials who are preparing plans to undertake large-scale works are confused by this development.
The Central Government launched this scheme in 2019. According to the details announced earlier, this scheme was to be completed by 2026. Since tap water facility has not been fully provided to every household yet, the Central Government has decided to extend this scheme till 2028.
According to the state government’s proposals, if the funds are to be allocated to the tune of Rs. 70,000 crores, about Rs. 23,000 crores have to be allocated annually. In the current financial year (2024-25), a huge amount of funds were allocated for this scheme across the country in the budget, but it was ultimately revised and limited to Rs. 22,694 crores.