Deputy Chief Minister and Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Minister, Pawan Kalyan announced proposals worth Rs 70,000 crore were being submitted to the Central Government to rejuvenate the Jaljeevan Mission. Addressing a state-level conference at Vijayawada on Wednesday, he mentioned that plans have been outlined to provide 55 litres of clean drinking water to rural residents every day through 38 major reservoirs.
Pawan Kalyan was quoted saying, "The earlier government misutilized Rs 4,000 crores by supplying water through boreholes rather than adhering to the original plan of the scheme. We will be able to conclude the Detailed Project Reports by January 2025 and seek further funding from the Central Government." He further launched the new brand, 'Amrut Dhara', to implement the Jaljeevan Mission in the state.
He had criticized the inefficiency of the previous government on design and poor execution of water supply projects. "Despite the Central Government investing over Rs 1 lakh crore nationwide, many people still face drinking water shortages. In 2008, during a visit to Adilabad, a blind woman's plea for water deeply affected me. Today, even villages in my Pithapuram constituency experience water scarcity," he said.
He appealed to citizens to support government initiatives to solve these problems. Other speakers who addressed the conference included MLC Hariprasad, Panchayati Raj and Rural Development Principal Secretary Shashibhushan Kumar, and Chief Engineers Sanjeeva Reddy, Venkateswara Rao, and Nayak.
