11 The Jal Jeevan Mission
28
With the launch of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), the government has set a target of
providing Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every household by
2024. With respect to water quality, states have been advised to take up Community
Water Purification Plant (CWPP) schemes in arsenic- and fluoride-affected habitations as an immediate (short-term) measure for providing 8–10 L per capita per day
(lpcd) of safe water for drinking and cooking purpose only. These states have also
been asked to plan for long-term measures in these habitations to provide FHTCs.
In case of piped water supply (surface water/ground water) which was approved
under NWQSM, states have been asked to provide FHTCs at service level of 55
lpcd to every rural household by retrofitting and making it JJM compliant by 2021.
In case of short-term measures (Community Water Purification Plant or CWPP)
approved under NWQSM, states will take measures to provide FHTCs at service
level of 55 lpcd to every rural household by 2021.
For the CWPP, the choice of technology has been left to states to decide.
However, the states have to ensure that such CWPP systems have robust
post-installation O&M systems and safe disposal of residue so that they continue to
function as per prescribed standards. While there are a number of water treatment
solutions available for different contaminants such as nanotechnology-based, reverse
osmosis, capacitive deionization, adsorption and electrolytic de-fluoridation, the
major considerations as outlined in the Jal Jeevan Mission guidelines for selecting a
particular technology include (i) availability of filter media, (ii) reject management
and (iii) cost-effectiveness of the solution.
The JJM guidelines also outline the mechanism for treating RO reject water which in
the current scenario is disposed off, in either open drains or discarded nearby, creating a
pool. The reject water is usually in large quantity based on the recovery ratio of the plant
and is estimated to be around 60% of the feed water. In order to properly manage the
reject water, the guidelines suggest that the reject needs to be stored separately in
structures specifically constructed for this purpose and use it for non-potable,
non-agricultural uses, i.e., washing of vehicles, agricultural equipment, house-washing,
vessels and flushing/cleaning of nearby community toilets. The guidelines indicate that
proper signage or warning against the use of the reject water for potable and agricultural
uses should be put up on and around the stored RO reject water structures.
With respect to water quality monitoring, it is mandated that water quality
laboratories will be set up at all levels—state, districts and blocks. These have to be
accredited by NABL. There are just 2233 drinking water testing laboratories in the
country, of which only 54 are NABL accredited. Of these, 19 are state laboratories
while 35 are district laboratories.
While the scheme envisages ensuring potable drinking water in all 17.87 crore
rural households in the country by 2024, the department also wants to empower the
public to be able to ascertain the quality of water being provided.
28
Jal Jeevan Mission Operational Guidelines, 2019, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
90
I. Khurana and R. Sen
28
With the launch of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), the government has set a target of
providing Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every household by
2024. With respect to water quality, states have been advised to take up Community
Water Purification Plant (CWPP) schemes in arsenic- and fluoride-affected habitations as an immediate (short-term) measure for providing 8–10 L per capita per day
(lpcd) of safe water for drinking and cooking purpose only. These states have also
been asked to plan for long-term measures in these habitations to provide FHTCs.
In case of piped water supply (surface water/ground water) which was approved
under NWQSM, states have been asked to provide FHTCs at service level of 55
lpcd to every rural household by retrofitting and making it JJM compliant by 2021.
In case of short-term measures (Community Water Purification Plant or CWPP)
approved under NWQSM, states will take measures to provide FHTCs at service
level of 55 lpcd to every rural household by 2021.
For the CWPP, the choice of technology has been left to states to decide.
However, the states have to ensure that such CWPP systems have robust
post-installation O&M systems and safe disposal of residue so that they continue to
function as per prescribed standards. While there are a number of water treatment
solutions available for different contaminants such as nanotechnology-based, reverse
osmosis, capacitive deionization, adsorption and electrolytic de-fluoridation, the
major considerations as outlined in the Jal Jeevan Mission guidelines for selecting a
particular technology include (i) availability of filter media, (ii) reject management
and (iii) cost-effectiveness of the solution.
The JJM guidelines also outline the mechanism for treating RO reject water which in
the current scenario is disposed off, in either open drains or discarded nearby, creating a
pool. The reject water is usually in large quantity based on the recovery ratio of the plant
and is estimated to be around 60% of the feed water. In order to properly manage the
reject water, the guidelines suggest that the reject needs to be stored separately in
structures specifically constructed for this purpose and use it for non-potable,
non-agricultural uses, i.e., washing of vehicles, agricultural equipment, house-washing,
vessels and flushing/cleaning of nearby community toilets. The guidelines indicate that
proper signage or warning against the use of the reject water for potable and agricultural
uses should be put up on and around the stored RO reject water structures.
With respect to water quality monitoring, it is mandated that water quality
laboratories will be set up at all levels—state, districts and blocks. These have to be
accredited by NABL. There are just 2233 drinking water testing laboratories in the
country, of which only 54 are NABL accredited. Of these, 19 are state laboratories
while 35 are district laboratories.
While the scheme envisages ensuring potable drinking water in all 17.87 crore
rural households in the country by 2024, the department also wants to empower the
public to be able to ascertain the quality of water being provided.
28
Jal Jeevan Mission Operational Guidelines, 2019, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
90
I. Khurana and R. Sen