UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath recently inaugurated the ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’ Uttar Pradesh (Har Ghar Jal) scheme. In the first phase of this scheme, 12 rural piped drinking water projects will be constructed in Bundelkhand region and government will spend Rs 2,185 crores in which around 14 lakh populations of three districts – Jhansi, Mahoba and Lalitpur in Bundelkhand region are expected to get piped drinking water in next two years. The entire project will cost the exchequer over Rs 10,131 crores.
On the initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the chief minister had asked officials to ensure every house gets piped water facility, especially in regions where groundwater is contaminated with fluoride and arsenic. Yogi Adityanath reminded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation of the Bundelkhand Pipe Payjal Yojana in February 2019 when he had come to Jhansi. “In next two years, drinking water will be made available to every household in Bundelkhand,” he said, adding that a nodal agency will look after the maintenance work for the next 10 years. The CM also mentioned that the region has largely been ignored since the independence of the country; otherwise, there would not have been droughts and poverty.
Bundelkhand region receives very little rainfall. The soil of the region is thick from the top and because of its granite base, groundwater site is also not very deep. Due to the region’s thick soil, it does not hold water for long. Since the geographical location of the region is not suitable for large embankments therefore an alternative method of groundwater recharge through the catchment area was adopted here.
