Minister gives strict instructions to officials in Jal Jeevan Mission review meeting
Latehar. A review meeting of the water supply schemes being operated under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) was organized on Monday in the Betla National Park auditorium under the chairmanship of the Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Excise and Prohibition Department, Shri Yogendra Prasad. In the meeting, a district-wise and scheme-wise detailed review of various water supply schemes being operated in the districts of Latehar, Garhwa, Palamu, Gumla, Simdega, and Lohardaga was conducted.
In the meeting, the officials of the concerned districts presented the current status of the schemes, completed and incomplete schemes, progress of construction work, status of water supply, and other information related to the implementation of the schemes before the minister.
During the review, Minister Shri Yogendra Prasad instructed that there should be no compromise with the quality of the construction work of the schemes. He said that Jal Jeevan Mission is an important public welfare scheme of the government, the objective of which is to provide safe and quality drinking water to every rural household through tap connection at home. It should be ensured that the schemes are completed within the stipulated time frame and drinking water facilities are provided to the villagers at the earliest.
A matter of negligence by the concerned contractors in the work, lack of expected progress, and non-adherence to prescribed standards in many schemes came to light during the meeting. Expressing displeasure over this, the minister instructed the concerned officials to take necessary action. He said that contractors exhibiting serious negligence should be blacklisted as per rules. Meanwhile, in cases where an investigation into irregularity or negligence is necessary, an investigation should be conducted, and based on the investigation report, action should be ensured against the concerned Executive Engineer and contractor as per rules.
The minister directed the officials to ensure regular monitoring and on-site inspection of the schemes, to complete pending works on a priority basis, and to take action in case of unnecessary delays. He also asked to regularly monitor whether villagers are actually benefiting from the completed schemes by receiving drinking water.
He clearly stated that any negligence at any level in the implementation of an important public welfare scheme like Jal Jeevan Mission will not be tolerated. It is the primary responsibility of the officials to ensure regular drinking water supply in rural areas by completing the schemes with quality and on time.
Departmental Secretary Shri Abu Imran also instructed the officials to give top priority to providing clean, safe, and adequate drinking water to the villagers. He emphasized speeding up the resolution of problems faced during the implementation of the schemes and ensuring that the benefits of the schemes reach all eligible families.
Various issues related to the effective implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission, including operation and maintenance of schemes, availability of water sources, status of pipelines and other infrastructure, and regular drinking water supply in rural areas, were discussed in the meeting.
On this occasion, Departmental Secretary Shri Abu Imran, Jal Jeevan Mission Director Shri Shashi Ranjan, Deputy Commissioner Latehar Shri Sandeep Kumar, Deputy Development Commissioner Latehar Shri Syed Riyaz Ahmed, along with Deputy Development Commissioners of Simdega, Lohardaga, Garhwa, and Palamu, Chief Engineer of the Drinking Water and Sanitation Department, Chief Engineer, Executive Engineers of the concerned districts, technical officers, contractors, and other officials were present.