Panaji: The current NDA government in the Centre has provided piped water connection to seven crore rural families during the past three years under the Jal Jeevan Mission, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday. He added that the scheme had helped India achieve the milestone of 10 crore such connections in villages till now, PTI reported.
Addressing a programme organised by the Goa government through a video link, he said, "In the seven decades since the Independence, only three crore rural households had piped water. But in the last three years, since the announcement of this mission, our government has connected seven crore additional rural households through tap water."
"The achievement of 10 crore milestone reflects the Centre's commitment towards the provision of water and preservation of the environment," he added.
According to him, when he introduced the 'Jal Jeevan' Mission, there were 16 crore rural families who were depending on other sources of water. "We could not keep such a big population struggling," he said.
In the programme, organised to mark 100 per cent piped water supply coverage in rural households in Goa and attended by Minister of 'Jal Shakti' Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Modi said that Jal Jeevan Mission was a success after people's participation, partnership of stakeholders, political will and optimum use of resources.