Every household in India will get water supply by 2024 under the ‘Jal-Jeevan Mission’ says Nirmala Sitharaman

• Finance Minister of India, Nirmala Sitharaman reiterated the need for sustainable water management system in India.
  

• The government has already identified 1592 block in 256 districts which are facing water crisis and is planning to infuse additional funds.
  

• India is suffering from its worst-ever water crisis in history.

Finance Minister of India, Nirmala Sitharaman reiterated the need for sustainable water management system in India. She said, Constitution of Jal Shakti Mantralaya was a big step in water management-- the ministry will look at water-related issues in a holistic manner and will ensure water supply in every household by 2024.

The government has already identified 1592 block in 256 districts which are facing water crisis and is planning to infuse additional funds.

India is suffering from its worst-ever water crisis in history. It has already started affecting hundreds and millions of lives and livelihoods across the country.

A large number of people are now washing utensils in dirty water, to save the clean water for cooking and drinking.

There won’t be any relief anytime soon as the southwest monsoon — accounting 80% of India’s rainfall — is late and is expected to be lower than usual in both north and south India.

As many as 100 million people in the country are suffering from the nation-wide water crisis. Moreover, 21 major cities are expected to be devoid of groundwater by 2020, says government think tank NITI Aayog

Only some parts of the country have received rainfall — that too almost a week late. Apart from the water crisis, the harsh heatwaves in the country took more than 137 lives .

India’s dwindling water sources worsened the situation. According to the Central Water Commission, two-thirds water reservoirs in the country are below normal levels.

More than 100 districts across the country are officially affected by drought. Most of the districts (80%) in Karnataka and Maharashtra (72%) are hit by drought and crop failure. As many as 8.2 million farmers are struggling for livelihood.

With scarcity comes strife. The state governments of Karnataka and Maharashtra — are now fighting over sharing water resources.

Not only this, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad are amongst the 21 cities that will run out of groundwater by 2020. This will affect as many as 100 million people, claims a report by NITI Ayog.

Furthermore, 40% of India’s population will struggle for drinking water by 2030. With India’s water crisis deepening by the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently created Ministry of Jal Shakti that is going to look after the water resource management.

Modi also reiterated his promise to provide piped water to every rural house in India by 2024.

The Drought Early Warning System (DEWS) reported that 43.4% areas in the country are under drought as of 30 May 2019. A delayed monsoon is among the primary reasons for the current crisis.