The administration of Ladakh has been planning, under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), reservoirs of capacity 174.44 lakh liters to provide 55 Litre Per Capita Per Day (LPCD) water to individual rural households on a regular basis.
This information was shared in the Lok Sabha in reply to a written question of Member Parliament from Ladakh, Jamyang Tsering Namgayal.
“As reported by the UT administration of Ladakh, under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), reservoirs of various capacities totalling 174.44 lakh litres have been planned. The thrust of the construction of these reservoirs is to provide 55 LPCD water to every household in Ladakh on a regular basis,” Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Prahlad Singh Patel told the Lower House of the Parliament.
He said, “These measures will address the water crisis for drinking and other household purposes in rural areas of Ladakh.”
The Union Minister said that due to extreme climatic conditions, difficult terrain and topography of Ladakh, there have been several challenges in the implementation of the JJM scheme in Ladakh.
He cited freezing of water at source in supply lines, sustainability of water supply schemes during freezing winter conditions, short working season resulting in extended execution period of works, supply of manpower and material and lack of technical manpower and technical support among other challenges as impediments in the implementation of the JJM scheme in the Union Territory.
“Government of India in partnership with States is the implementation of JJM to provide tap water in adequate quantity (minimum 55 LPCD) of prescribe quality and on regular and long-term basis to every rural household by 2024,” the Minister further said.
“So far,” he said, “70% of the households have been covered and it is hoped that 100% coverage will be achieved by the end of Financial Year 2023-24,” added the Union Minister for Jal Shakti.
