New Delhi, Dec 30 (IANS) Union Jal Shakti Minister C. R. Paatil on Tuesday e-launched Jal Seva Aankalan, a Gram Panchayat-led digital drinking water service functionality assessment tool on the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) portal, an official said.

The service is a step towards strengthening service delivery and community ownership under the Jal Jeevan Mission, the Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti, the official said in a statement.

Addressing the gathering, the Minister emphasised that Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) is not only about creating assets but about delivering dependable drinking water services to every rural household on a sustained basis.

He outlined the four key pillars of the Mission — Political Will, People’s Participation, Stakeholder Collaboration, and Optimal Resource Use, and underscored that Jan Bhagidari is the most crucial pillar for ensuring the long-term sustainability of Har Ghar Jal achievements.

He stated that Jal Seva Aankalan empowers Gram Panchayats to become custodians of their own water supply systems and strengthens democratic decision-making through Gram Sabhas.

The Minister said, “Jal Jeevan Mission is for the people and for the villages, and the responsibility to keep it going rests with the community itself; this can be achieved only through Jan Bhagidari.”

The Minister underscored that community participation and transparency are essential for the long-term sustainability of rural drinking water systems, and that the new tool will help identify service delivery gaps early and enable timely corrective action.

The assessment tool marks a decisive shift from infrastructure creation to sustained service delivery, placing Gram Panchayats and village institutions at the centre of assessing the regularity, adequacy, quality and sustainability of drinking water supply in Har Ghar Jal (HGJ) villages, said the statement.

With a large number of Gram Panchayats having achieved Har Ghar Jal status, Jal Jeevan Mission has entered a new phase where the emphasis is on ensuring that tap connections translate into reliable and safe drinking water services daily.

Jal Seva Aankalan has been conceptualised as a community-owned self-assessment, enabling villages to collectively reflect on their water service delivery systems rather than relying solely on infrequent and costly third-party surveys.

The event was attended by Ministers of State for Jal Shakti V. Somanna and Raj Bhushan Choudhary, along with senior officials of DDWS, representatives from States and institutions, Panchayat Secretaries, Sarpanches and Village Water and Sanitation Committee members.

Around 10,000 representatives of Har Ghar Jal Gram Panchayats from across States/ UTs participated virtually in the programme.

–IANS

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