Mumbai: A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has criticised the implementation of the Centre’s flagship Jal Jeevan Mission in Maharashtra, pointing out that there were deficiencies in the coverage, implementation and funding of the scheme. During the five-year audit period of 2019-24, only 12,703 or 24.6% of 51,560 water supply schemes initiated in the state were completed and 38,857 or 75.3% were ongoing, it said.The CAG report also pointed to an overestimation of the scheme’s coverage. It said the state’s reported achievement of 85.1 per cent Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTCs) by March 2024 was misleading as it included 27.7 lakh households with private or own-source tap connections that were yet to be covered under the mission. Excluding these, the actual achievement under the JJM stood at 101.3 lakh connections, or only 69% by December 2024, the audit said.The Jal Jeevan Mission is the Centre’s flagship programme launched in August 2019 to provide functional household tap connections (FHTC) to every rural household. The funds for the programme are shared between the Centre and state in a 50:50 ratio.The audit was conducted between July and October 2024 and covered the period 2019-20 to 2023-24. The CAG report for 2024 was tabled in the state legislature on Friday.The report also pointed to the delay in the release of funds, pointing out that the state’s schemes received only 46.3% of the funds they were entitled to in the 5-year period. “Maharashtra was admissible for Rs 59,740.9 crore but the total releases from the Centre and state were Rs 27,657.5 crore,” the report pointed out.The delays in the implementation of the project caused a cost-escalation, the CAG report said. The initial estimated expenditure in 2020 was Rs 13,668.5 crore. However, a sum of Rs 26,410.5 crore was incurred by March 2024 without achieving the target of providing FHTC to every household, it said.The audit was deeply critical of the poor planning in the programme. “The cost of implementation increased due to inadequate initial planning, deficient surveys, delays in execution and frequent revision of schemes,” it said. It said that schemes were planned without assured water sources, there was no baseline survey, the village action plan was deficient and the district action plan was not prepared for the whole scheme period.For instance, the audit found that 13 water supply schemes were sanctioned for augmenting the water supply but the water source was not ensured which delayed the completion of the schemes. Two water supply schemes were sanctioned without the provision of a water treatment plant, resulting in the supply of non-potable water.
