SHILLONG : The Meghalaya government has identified 322 villages requiring focused attention after reviewing the actual functioning of household tap connections under the Jal Jeevan Mission.
Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma reviewed the progress of the mission and the state’s preparedness for Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0 with the Public Health Engineering Department and the JJM Meghalaya team.
The review looked beyond the number of household tap connections and examined whether households were actually receiving water through those connections.
According to the latest assessment, 87.32 per cent of villages in Meghalaya are receiving regular water supply. However, the proportion receiving water every day is lower at 79.23 per cent, while 71.74 per cent of villages meet the required adequacy level.
The figures have prompted the government to identify 322 villages where additional attention is required.
Officials also reviewed the reasons behind non-functional household tap connections and discussed measures to restore and improve water supply schemes.
A State Improvement Plan has been prepared covering repairs, retrofitting of existing schemes, operation and maintenance costs and measures for the long-term sustainability of water sources and infrastructure.
The exercise comes as Meghalaya prepares for Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0, the next phase of the national rural drinking water programme. The focus of the second phase is on maintaining existing infrastructure and ensuring that tap connections continue to provide reliable water rather than only expanding the number of connections.
Meghalaya signed an agreement with the Centre for implementation of JJM 2.0 in March this year.
The state has made substantial progress in expanding household tap connections under the first phase of the mission. However, the latest assessment indicates that the presence of a tap connection does not always mean that households receive water regularly or in adequate quantities.
Sangma said the government’s focus would be to ensure that every household tap connection provides reliable, adequate and regular water supply.
The PHE Department and JJM Meghalaya team will now work on the identified gaps, including repairs, retrofitting and operation and maintenance of schemes in the 322 villages requiring focused intervention.
