Karnataka lagging in Jal Jeevan Mission due to state govt's apathy: Union Minister V Somanna

In a letter to Siddaramaiah, Somanna said the state’s tardy progress, failure to release matching grants, and delay in submitting utilisation certificates have severely affected the scheme’s implementation.

New Delhi: Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti, V Somanna, on Thursday criticised the Congress ruled Karnataka government for the slow implementation of the Centrally sponsored Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) scheme.

In a strongly worded letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Somanna said the state’s tardy progress, failure to release matching grants, and delay in submitting utilisation certificates have severely affected the scheme’s implementation.

Somanna's response came in the background of Siddaramaiah criticising the Centre not releasing the pending funds and reimburse dues under the JJM claiming that the state has continued implementation by investing Rs 17,554 crore despite no central support for over two years.

The CM was speaking through a video conference meeting during the MoU for Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0 on Wednesday. Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil also presented during the meeting.

The JJM, launched by the NDA government in August 2019, aims to provide piped potable water to every rural household in the country. The original scheme period was from 2019 to 2024, during which the Centre sanctioned Rs 28,623.89 crore for Karnataka. However, due to poor execution by the state, only Rs 11,152.16 crore could be utilised, leaving Rs 16,863.86 crore unspent.

On the physical front, Karnataka completed only 24,888 projects out of 66,244 approved, registering a mere 35.50 per cent progress. Financially, the performance was even worse, with just 9,325 projects completed — a dismal 14.05 per cent achievement.As a result, Karnataka ranks 22nd among states in the nationwide progress of the JJM, Somanna said.

The minister pointed out that even as of March 15, 2024, the state government had not issued work orders for 26 projects worth Rs 1,716 crore. Somanna noted that before the launch of JJM, only 24.2 per cent of rural households in Karnataka had piped water connections. This has now increased to 86.93 per cent, providing new tap connections to 63.5 lakh households.

However, he highlighted that actual water supply through these pipelines remains poor. Out of 26,591 villages with infrastructure, only 6,989 villages are currently receiving water. No district in the state has yet received certification for 100 per cent household tap connections, he said.

A central probe into the slow progress revealed several irregularities, including frequent changes in design and technical specifications, inclusion of land acquisition costs, and operation & maintenance expenses in the project estimates, Somanna said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has extended the Jal Jeevan Mission till December 2028 and assured additional central funds to help states complete the scheme.

Somanna warned that "the Centre will reimburse additional expenditure by the state only if it is spent strictly as per JJM guidelines. Any spending that violates the guidelines will not be reimbursed by the Union government."