Government forms new ‘Jal Shakti’ Ministry

June 1, 2019

The Centre has created a new Ministry called ‘Jal Shakti’ by merger of Ministries of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation along with Drinking Water and Sanitation. The move will bring all aspects of water management and regulation under one department.

About Jal Ministry

Background: In first Modi government (2014-2019) the project to clean Ganga was moved from Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to Ministry of Water Resources. Later, with a greater push and larger monetary allocation, the Namami Gange project was launched in June 2014. During the 17th Lok Sabha election campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to create an integrated ministry to deal with water related isuues.
Minister: The Jal ministry will be headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Gajendra Singh Shekhawat while Ram Lal Kataria will be the minister of state.
Ambit:
- As promised in BJP’s vision document in run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the ‘Nal se Jal’ scheme to provide piped drinking water to every household will be a component of government’s Jal Jivan Mission.
- The ministry will roll out government’s ambitious plans to provide piped water connections to every household in India by 2024.
- It will also address international and inter-states water disputes and the Namami Gange project which is the flagship initiative to clean the River Ganga, its tributaries and sub-tributaries.
- The Jal Ministry’s priority will be to provide clean drinking water to everyone.