Reference library

Public
issues

The policy subjects that fall within the Ministry of Jal Shakti's remit, each with its context, the framework that governs it, the position as last reported, and where to read further.

Entries
Eleven subjects
Basis
Government of India sources, dated at the point of use
Scope
Subjects within the ministry's remit, and their adjacent questions

Filter by theme

Drinking water

Rural piped water supply

Context. India's rural water programmes measured coverage by the existence of a village source until 2019, when the unit of measurement changed to the household.

Framework. Jal Jeevan Mission, restructured as JJM 2.0 by Cabinet decision of 10 March 2026, with a service-delivery basis and a target of December 2028.

As reported. About 15.83 crore of roughly 19.36 crore rural households reported with tap water supply as at 31 March 2026.

 Sanitation

Rural sanitation and waste management

Context. Ending open defecation was the first-phase objective; managing what a village does with its solid and liquid waste is the second.

Framework. Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase II, 2020–21 to 2026–27, built on the ODF Plus (Model) standard.

As reported. 4,96,180 of 5,86,944 villages declared ODF Plus (Model) as at 10 February 2026, with wide variation between States.

 Groundwater

Aquifer depletion and assessment

Context. Most of India's irrigation and rural drinking water rests on groundwater, which is assessed block by block every year.

Framework. Dynamic Ground Water Resource Assessment; NAQUIM aquifer mapping; Central Ground Water Authority regulation under guidelines of 24 September 2020.

As reported. National stage of extraction 60.63 per cent for 2025; 10.8 per cent of assessment units over-exploited, down from 17.2 per cent in 2017.

 Conservation

Recharge and rainwater harvesting

Context. Most annual rainfall arrives in about a hundred days. Conservation policy is therefore about interception and recharge rather than restricting use.

Framework. Jal Shakti Abhiyan from 2019; Catch the Rain from 2021; merged as Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari: Catch the Rain on 1 June 2026.

As reported. More than 83,000 structures under Atal Bhujal Yojana; about 69,000 Amrit Sarovars constructed or rejuvenated.

 Rivers

River pollution and rejuvenation

Context. Rivers cross state boundaries, so their management sits with national missions and statutory authorities rather than with any one administration.

Framework. Namami Gange Programme, implemented by the National Mission for Clean Ganga since June 2014.

As reported. 355 of 524 sanctioned projects completed as at February 2026; 3,200 MLD of treatment capacity added over five years.

 Ecology

Riverine biodiversity

Context. River health is measured by what lives in a river as well as by what is dissolved in it. Dolphins, gharials and freshwater turtles are indicator species for the Ganga system.

Framework. Species restoration in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India and State forest departments, under Namami Gange.

As reported. Nationwide Ganges dolphin population of 6,324 from surveys across 8,507 km; 3,037 gharials recorded across 22 rivers.

 Agriculture

Irrigation demand and efficiency

Context. Irrigation accounts for by far the largest share of water use, so cropping choice, power tariffs for agricultural pumps and procurement policy shape groundwater draw more than water regulation does.

Framework. Micro-irrigation and efficient application are counted as conservation measures; Atal Bhujal Yojana links community management to irrigation practice.

As reported. More than 9 lakh hectares brought under efficient irrigation practices under Atal Bhujal Yojana.

 Public health

Water quality and contamination

Context. Fluoride, arsenic, iron, nitrate, salinity and bacteriological contamination make water unusable even where it is physically available.

Framework. Laboratory testing through State, district and block laboratories, with village-level surveillance using field testing kits.

Note. This site does not attribute health outcomes to water or sanitation programmes in the absence of verified epidemiological evidence.

 Technology

Digital monitoring and asset registries

Context. A programme spanning 36 States and Union Territories cannot be managed from paper returns; central monitoring depends on machine-readable reporting.

Framework. Sujalam Bharat assigns every village a unique service-area identifier, mapping supply from source to tap; fund release is tied to validation against the asset registry.

As reported. 1,77,156 service-area IDs generated, linked to 1,13,849 scheme IDs, as at 31 March 2026.

 Governance

Union and State responsibility

Context. Water is a State subject under the Constitution. The Union funds, sets norms and monitors; States build, own and operate.

Framework. Union List Entry 56 for inter-state rivers; State List Entry 17 for water supply, irrigation and drainage. Central assistance now flows through reform-linked agreements with States.

Consequence. Every national figure on this site is an aggregation of returns made by individual State and UT administrations.

 Participation

Community institutions

Context. Infrastructure handed to a village without local ownership rarely survives its first breakdown, which is the stated reasoning behind the programmes' community design.

Framework. Gram Panchayats and Village Water and Sanitation Committees, through Jal Arpan handover, Jal Seva Aankalan and Swachh Seva Aankalan assessment, and the three-tier Jal Utsav campaign.

Open question. Whether participation of this design produces durable maintenance would require independent evaluation to establish.

Sources and references

  1. Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Release ID 2247224, 31 March 2026 — pib.gov.in
  2. Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Release ID 2220203, 29 January 2026 — pib.gov.in
  3. Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Release ID 2226999, 12 February 2026 — pib.gov.in
  4. Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Release ID 2244007, 23 March 2026 — pib.gov.in
  5. Each entry above links to the reference page on this site where the subject is set out in full, with its own sources.

Last updated: September 2026