New Delhi, Dec 2 (IANS) Since 2019-20, the total Central share fund released under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) for Bihar is Rs 770.95 crore, but the State government has not drawn JJM funds from 2021-22 onwards, Ministry data showed on Tuesday.

According to Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil, under the JJM scheme, funds are released directly to the States/ UTs and their district-wise fund details are not maintained at the Government of India level.

Since 2019-20, the total Central share fund released under JJM for the State of Bihar is Rs 770.95 crore. The State Government of Bihar has not drawn JJM funds from 2021-22 onwards, Patil said on Monday in reply to a question raised by Akhilesh Prasad Singh in Rajya Sabha.

He said an online JJM – Water Quality Management Information System (WQMIS) portal has also been developed to enable the States/ UTs for online reporting of water quality monitoring and surveillance, including test reports of water samples for water quality and sample collection for drinking water.

Earlier, replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Choudhary said that a proposal for the Modified Parbati–Kalisindh–Chambal (MPKC) link has been formulated to optimise the utilisation of water resources of the Chambal River System, and following deliberations with the States of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

This proposal integrates the components suggested by the Government of Madhya Pradesh in the Kuno, Parbati, and Kalisindh sub-basins, together with the components of the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) as proposed by the Government of Rajasthan.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on January 28, 2024, followed by a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) on December 5, 2024, among the States of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Government for the implementation of the link project.

The Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) pertaining to the Rajasthan components have been completed and submitted to the Central Water Commission (CWC) under the Ministry of Jal Shakti for techno-economic appraisal.

No proposal for inclusion of ERCP as a National Project is presently under consideration in this Ministry, he said.

–IANS

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