Prime Minister, Narendra Modi addressed the Har Ghar Jal Utsav under Jal Jeevan Mission via a video message. The event took place at Panaji Goa. Chief Minister of Goa Shri Pramod Sawant, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat were among those present on the occasion.
At the outset, the Prime Minister shared every Indian’s pride in three important milestones related to the huge goals that India is working on in Amrit Kaal, that were accomplished today. He said “Firstly, today 10 crore rural households of the country have been connected to piped clean water facility. This is a big success of the government’s campaign to deliver water to every household. This is a great example of ‘Sabka Prayas’”.
Secondly, he congratulated Goa for becoming the first Har Ghar Jal certified state where every household is connected to piped water. He also acknowledged Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu as first Union territories to achieve the feat. The Prime Minister lauded the people, government and local self-government institutions for their efforts. He informed that many states are going to join the list very soon.
The third achievement, the Prime Minister informed, is that one lakh villages in different states of the country have turned ODF plus. After the country was declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) a few years ago, the next resolution was to achieve ODF plus status for villages i.e. they should have community toilets, plastic waste management, grey water management and Gobardhan projects.
Underlining the water security challenge that the world is facing, the Prime Minister said that water scarcity can become a huge obstacle in accomplishing the resolution of Developed India – Viksit Bharat. “Our government has been working relentlessly for the last 8 years for the projects of water security”, he said.
Reiterating the need for a long-term approach above selfish short-term approach, the Prime Minister emphasized “It is true that to form a government, one does not have to work that hard as one has to work to build a country. We have all chosen to work for nation building. That is why we are working on the challenges of the present and the future. Those who do not care about the country, are not bothered about spoiling the present or future of the country. Such people can definitely talk big, but can never work with a big vision for water.”
Talking about the multi-pronged approach of the government to ensure water security, the Prime Minister listed initiatives like ‘Catch the Rain’, Atal Bhujal Scheme, 75 Amrit Sarovars in every district, river-linking and Jal Jeevan Mission. He said that the number of Ramsar wetland Sites in India has gone up to 75, out of which 50 were added in the last 8 years.
