The Union Cabinet has approved an extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission period up to December 2028 and a restructuring that reorients implementation from infrastructure creation to service delivery supported by drinking water governance and an institutional ecosystem for sustainable rural piped potable water supply. The Cabinet approved an enhanced total outlay of Rs eight point six nine trillion (tn) with total central assistance of Rs three point five nine trillion (tn), up from Rs two point zero eight trillion (tn) approved in 2019–20 and representing an additional central share of Rs one point five one trillion (tn).

A uniform national digital framework called Sujalam Bharat will assign every village a unique Sujal Gaon or Service Area ID and digitally map the complete drinking water supply system from source to tap, while Jal Arpan will involve gram panchayats and village water and sanitation committees in commissioning and handover of schemes. A Gram Panchayat will certify completion of works and declare itself Har Ghar Jal only after state governments confirm that adequate in?village operation and maintenance mechanisms have been established, and the programme will promote an annual community maintenance and review event, Jal Utsav, to reinforce local ownership and sustainability.

From a baseline of 32.3 million (mn) rural households with tap water connections in 2019, when 17 per cent had service, more than 125.6 million additional households have been provided with connections under JJM, bringing the identified total to about 193.6 million households. At present around 158 million households, or 81.61 per cent, are reported to have tap water connections, and JJM 2.0 seeks to certify all Gram Panchayats as Har Ghar Jal by provisioning tap water connections to the remaining households by December 2028 through separate memoranda of understanding with states and union territories.

Independent assessments report wide social and economic benefits, including large reductions in women’s burden, health gains and employment generation.