Jaipur, March 14 (IANS) Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma on Saturday directed officials and district administrations to ensure effective drinking water management across every village and town during the summer season, stating that the public should not face any water scarcity.

Chairing a review meeting at the Chief Minister’s Office on pre-summer preparations, Sharma said officials must strictly monitor the implementation of the state’s summer contingency plan.

He instructed departments to complete all preparations — including the installation of new hand pumps and tube wells and the repair of existing pumps, pipelines and water infrastructure — before the peak summer months.

The Chief Minister warned that no negligence would be tolerated in ensuring uninterrupted water supply.

Sharma directed officials of the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) and the electricity department to work in close coordination.

He said all drinking water-related complaints received on the state helpline 181 must be resolved within 24 hours.

He also asked officials to reduce supply intervals in areas where drinking water is currently provided once every 48, 72 or 96 hours.

Officials informed the meeting that a comprehensive contingency plan has been prepared for both rural and urban areas across all 41 districts.

District Collectors presented region-specific action plans, including strategies for canal-fed areas in Bikaner, desert districts such as Jodhpur, tube-well dependent regions like Dungarpur, and tribal and hilly areas in Udaipur.

Sharma also announced that the ‘Viksit Gram–Shahari Ward’ (Developed Village–Urban Ward) campaign will be launched on March 19 as part of the state’s development initiatives.

The programme aims to prepare development master plans at the Gram Panchayat and urban ward levels.

He said the initiative will focus on planned development in areas such as education, healthcare, drinking water, electricity and road infrastructure, while also identifying opportunities for small and micro industries in both rural and urban areas.

Highlighting environmental efforts, the Chief Minister said nearly 190 million saplings have been planted across the state over the past two years, while a target of more than 100 million saplings has been set for the current year.

He directed officials to identify suitable plantation sites in advance and promote the planting of fruit-bearing trees suited to local ecological conditions, noting that such plantations can support both agricultural productivity and water conservation.

The meeting was attended by PHED Minister Kanhaiya Lal, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Sumit Godara, Chief Secretary V. Srinivas and other senior officials, while several Divisional Commissioners and District Collectors joined via video conference.

–IANS

arc/pgh