Shillong, Feb 8: As Meghalaya makes Jal Jeevan Mission a ‘Jan Andolan’, the state will soon launch its water mission called ‘Meghalaya Water Mission’ to focus on all water-related issues in a comprehensive manner.

With less than two years remaining for the completion of the Jal Jeevan Mission project in the state, the Government could complete only 10 percent of the project.

Minister in charge of PHE Renikton Lyngdoh Tongkhar said, “…We have crossed 10 percent of the achievement, we are still determined, we have not surrendered, we are still determined to complete 100 percent by the end of December 2022.”

Hopeful of completing the herculean task, the State government has set its target to complete household tap connections across all rural areas of the State by December 2022 under the Jal Jeevan Mission.

Talking about the hurdles faced by the Government in completion of the project, the Minister said, “The main hurdle all these days is the procurement of pipes where the Department could not procure because we were depending on one company for all those days and this company could not supply the quantity when the requirement jumps many times, now in the last cabinet we have approved and allowed the department to buy pipes from any manufacturers….. “

While hoping that the performance will jump in the next two-three months, Renikton said, “… I know many reasons why the progress of Jal Jeevan Mission is not satisfactory because due to the non-availability of pipes which means our local contractors who have taken the work are still hoping that department will give the pipes, I hope in two-three months we could recover.”

“…. The department will buy pipes and then issue to the contractors and that will take some time till the process is over….,” Tongkhar assured.

“As of now we have lots of schemes sanctioned under JJM for which the department is working day and night to complete the formalities of calling tender and awarding the works to the contractors and allowing the contractors as of now to buy pipes by themselves… those contractors who are able, financially sound buy pipes by themselves will take the work, they will buy pipes from the market and they will do the work…” he added.

“We are in the process of procuring pipes so that time when we are able to procure pipe it will allow the local contractors who are not much financially strong to be able to do the work because the department will support them by issuing pipes to them,” he said adding that he has high hope that the work will be completed on time.

Jal Jeevan Mission is a project funded by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India, which envisages providing safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections by 2024 to all households in rural India.