Jal Jeevan Mission under fire: Accusing dy CM Sao of providing inaccurate info, Oppn MLAs walk out
Chhattisgarh Assembly
on Tuesday regarding the progress and expenditure of the Jal Jeevan Mission, with the opposition alleging significant discrepancies in the reported figures and a slow pace of work under the current govt.
The discussion began with a question from former chief minister
Bhupesh Baghel
seeking details on the expenditure and targets under the Jal Jeevan Mission.
Deputy chief minister, who also heads the public works department, Arun Sao responded, providing district-wise expenditure details and stating that 31,16,398 households so far received tap water connections.
Baghel then raised concerns, highlighting a drastic reduction in expenditure in several districts during the 2024-25 financial year compared to the previous two years.
He pointed out that Raipur, Mungeli, Rajnandgaon, Janjgir, Jashpur, and Balrampur districts saw significantly lower spending. For example, Janjgir, which spent Rs 320 crore in 2023-24 and Rs 338 crore in 2022-23, only spent Rs 79 crore in 2024-25.
Similarly, Koriya spent only Rs 43 crore in 2024-25, compared to Rs 135 crore earlier.
Baghel also questioned the achievement of targets for tap connections, alleging severe shortfalls.
The deputy chief minister clarified the expenditure figures, stating that Rs 4,203 crore was spent in 2022-23 (16% of the total project cost), Rs 5,474 crore in 2023-24 (20%), and Rs 3,522 crore in 2024-25 (14%). He added that till July 1, 2025, a total of Rs 15,045 crore, or approximately 57% of the project cost, was spent, and 31 lakh households are receiving tap water. He acknowledged that the project, originally slated for completion in 2024, was not completed on time.
Sao attributed the varying performance across districts to the availability of resources and the pace of work.
Sao further stated that the previous govt's 'e-mission' portal recorded 36 lakh tap connections by Dec 2023 for the purpose of showing progress, but a verification in June 2024 revealed that only 21 lakh households were actually receiving water. He accused the previous govt of merely installing connections and taps without ensuring water supply.
He added that the current govt provided an additional 12,316 borewells to ensure water supply, and 3,836 villages now have complete tap water access.
Out of approximately 29,000 projects, 5,017 projects are fully functional.
Baghel further cornered the deputy chief minister, questioning the pace of work by the current govt. He said that based on the deputy chief minister's own figures, the current govt only provided 10 lakh connections in two years since taking office, while the previous govt provided 21 lakh connections.
He asked for clarification on whether the 21 lakh figure truly represented households receiving water or if it was merely an inflated statistic.
Other opposition MLAs, including Dilip Lahariya and Yashodamani Verma, interjected, claiming that the ground reality was different and that water was not reaching many villages. They alleged that the figures presented were false. Leader of Opposition Charan Das Mahant also joined in on the debate, highlighting that the current govt, in its 20-month tenure, completed only 7% of the Jal Jeevan Mission work, while the previous govt completed 73% by Dec 2023.
.
The deputy chief minister reiterated that the 21 lakh figure was from June 2024, which includes the work done in the first six months of the current govt's tenure. He stated that the govt gave approximately 10 lakh water connections with actual water supply since taking office. Unsatisfied with the deputy chief minister's response, the opposition MLAs, led by Baghel, staged a walkout.
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