What is Manipur Water Supply Project?

On June 23, 2020, Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation of the Manipur Water Supply Project via video conferencing. While inaugurating the project, he stated that the project is the Raksha Bandhan gift to the women of Manipur from his side. 

The Prime Minister added that the project will give clean drinking water to Greater Imphal and 1,700 villages in Manipur. It will provide a lifeline to the people living there. It will help the women of as many as one lakh families in the state of Manipur. He further added that the project is a great example of decentralization of power as it has been designed with the help of local panchayats and the people of the region. 

As per the Prime Minister, the project will create job opportunities for thousands of people. The COVID-19 pandemic didn't stop the work and pipelines were laid amidst the pandemic. The Prime Minister gave an assurance to the people of the state as they fight twin battles with the COVID-19 and floods. 

Aim of the project

The 'Manipur Water Supply Project' is an externally funded project which aims at providing FHTCs (Functional Household Tap Connection) to the remaining households in the Greater Imphal Planning area, 25 towns, and for 1,731 rural habitations covering 2,80,756 households in 16 districts of Manipur. This project will help the Government of India to achieve its 'Har Ghar Jal' mission by the year 2024. 

Fund for the project

The project is funded by the Central Government under its 'Jal Jeevan Mission'. The mission will provide freshwater household tap connections (FHTCs) to 1,185 habitations with 1,42,749 households. New Development Bank has provided a loan for the project. 

About Jal Jeevan Mission

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her maiden 2019 budget speech in the parliament introduced 'Jal Jeevan Mission' to tackle the problems faced by rural India when it comes to accessing clean and adequate drinking water. She also promised to provide unhindered water supply to rural India by the year 2024. 

In her speech, Sitharaman stated that the clean drinking water to urban and rural households is the topmost priority of her government. She named the 'Jal Jeevan Mission' initiative as 'Har Ghar Jal'. Around Rs. 3.5 trillion will be allocated for the Jal Jeevan Scheme, as per Prime Minister and Defence Minister of India.