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Opinion: Jal Jeevan Mission And PM Modi's Welfare Model
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Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) demonstrates that ambitious infrastructure delivery can achieve both developmental goals and political sustainability
India's Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) represents one of the most ambitious public infrastructure undertakings of the Modi era. Launched on August 15, 2019, this flagship scheme has transformed rural water access from a mere aspiration into a reality.
The mission's targets were precise: provide functional household tap connections to every rural household by 2024, raising coverage from a baseline of just 17% (3.23 crore households) to universal access. By February 2025, JJM had achieved remarkable progress, connecting over 15.44 crore rural households, representing 79.74% coverage across India's countryside.
This represents the addition of 12.20 crore new connections in under six years, a pace of infrastructure delivery that stands amongst the fastest globally.
Eleven states and Union Territories have achieved complete coverage, including Goa, Haryana, Telangana, Gujarat, Puducherry, and several northeastern states. The mission has simultaneously ensured water access to 89% of schools and 85% of Anganwadi centres.
The mission operates through multi-tier governance: National Jal Jeevan Mission, State Water and Sanitation Missions, District missions, and Gram Panchayat-level committees.
Innovation and Infrastructure
JJM's implementation demonstrates sophisticated governance mechanisms that transcend traditional welfare delivery. The programme deploys multiple technological interventions, including IoT-based sensor systems for real-time monitoring, comprehensive digital dashboards, and community-level water quality testing capabilities.
The mission operates through a robust digital ecosystem encompassing the JJM Dashboard, Integrated Management Information System (IMIS), Water Quality Monitoring Information System (WQMIS), and IoT platforms that together create unprecedented transparency. Over 2,162 laboratories conduct water testing, whilst 24.80 lakh women have been trained to operate Field Testing Kits, establishing community-level quality assurance.
Third-party functionality assessments provide independent verification of scheme performance. The 2022 assessment found that 86% of households had working tap connections, with 85% receiving adequate quantity, 80% with a regular supply, and 87% meeting quality standards. This multi-layered monitoring system ensures accountability whilst building local institutional capacity.
India had surpassed last year's record of tap installation within the first eight months of this year alone. A total of 2.16 crore new tap water connections were installed until August this year, compared to the 2.08 crore installed in the entirety of 2022.
According to a survey by LocalCircles, there has been an upward trend in people who believe that tap water quality has improved. Around 44% of the respondents said that their tap water is good or higher, up from 35% last year. However, 14% of respondents still rated piped water supplied to their homes as 'poor" or 'very poor." And only 3% of respondents said that they do not need to purify tap water before drinking it. In addition, nearly 72% purify tapped water.
Quality assurance operates through multiple checkpoints: third-party inspections before payments, geo-tagging of all assets, Aadhaar linking for targeted delivery, and regular functionality assessments ensuring sustainable and broad coverage of the mission.
Health and Economic Impact
Nobel Laureate Professor Michael Kremer's meta-analysis of 15 randomised controlled trials concluded that successful JJM implementation could prevent approximately 1.36 lakh under-five child deaths annually, a 30% reduction in child mortality rates.
The WHO estimates that universal coverage will save 5.5 crore hours daily previously spent on water collection, whilst preventing around 4 lakh deaths from waterborne diseases annually. IIM Bengaluru projects the creation of 11.84 lakh person-years of direct employment during the operations and maintenance phase.
The Har Ghar Jal Initiative has also saved crores from arsenic poisoning. According to the government, in 2019, there were 14,020 habitations across six states that were affected or contaminated by arsenic. As of July 2023, that number saw a drastic reduction to just about 460 habitations across three states in West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Assam.
With universal coverage of safely managed drinking water in India, almost 14 million Disability Adjusted Life Years from diarrhoeal disease are estimated to be averted, resulting in estimated cost savings of up to $101 billion.
The mission has encountered notable implementation hurdles and missed its initial December 2024 target. In four states, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala, and Jharkhand, progress has lagged, with roughly 46% of households in each still lacking access to safe drinking water. The mission has been extended to 2028. It continues to be a major focus area for the government, as current funding stands at Rs 67,000 crore for FY 2025-26.
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The Jal Jeevan Mission represents Modi's broader governance that is sustained by political success and requires delivering transformative change rather than populist appeasement. By focusing on infrastructure that creates permanent improvements to rural life, clean water, sanitation, housing, and digital connectivity, the administration builds institutional capacity while addressing genuine development needs.
This contrasts sharply with traditional welfare politics centred on redistributive cash transfers. JJM demonstrates that ambitious infrastructure delivery can achieve both developmental goals and political sustainability. Lasting political support requires building state capacity to deliver measurable improvements to citizens' lives, rather than merely redistributing resources through inefficient bureaucratic systems.
About the Author
Sohil Sinha
Sohil Sinha is a Sub Editor at News18. He writes on foreign affairs, geopolitics along with domestic policy and infrastructure projects.
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New Delhi, India, India
First Published:
August 15, 2025, 11:23 IST
News opinion Opinion: Jal Jeevan Mission And PM Modi's Welfare Model
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