IMPHAL, Feb 28: Assam, Manipur, and Tripura in the Northeast are among 14 States and Union Territories that have yet to provide tap water connections to 85% of rural households under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM). The mission, aimed at providing tap water to every rural household by 2024, was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 15, 2019, in partnership with the states and the central government.

The mission has successfully provided tap water to over 15.45 crore (79.79%) rural households out of a total of 19.36 crore rural households. In Assam, approximately 81.32% of the 72.25 lakh rural households have been connected to tap water, while in Tripura, 84.95% of the 7.51 lakh rural households have received connections. Manipur has provided tap water connections to 79.59% of its 4.52 lakh rural households.

At the start of the JJM in August 2019, only 16.8% of rural households had access to tap water. However, the scheme has made significant progress, with over 12.22 crore rural households receiving tap water connections by February 2025.

While states like Gujarat and Punjab have already achieved full tap water coverage, the mission continues in other states, including Assam, Manipur, and Tripura, to ensure all rural households are connected by the target year of 2024. As of now, 11 states and Union Territories, including Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Punjab, Telangana, A&N Islands, Dadra Nagar Haveli, Daman Diu, and Puducherry, have achieved full rural tap water connectivity.

The Jal Jeevan Mission aims to improve access to safe drinking water for rural populations, which historically faced significant challenges. According to the Jal Shakti Ministry, at the inception of JJM, more than 50% of the rural population lacked access to safe drinking water. With full implementation of JJM, the government estimates that it could prevent around 1,36,000 under-5 deaths annually, provided the water supplied is free from microbiological contamination.