Jal Shakti Ministry Reviews Water Governance and Service Delivery

27 Nov 2025 CW Team

The Ministry of Jal Shakti convened a high-level brainstorming session in New Delhi, chaired by Union Minister Shri C. R. Patil, to discuss measures to strengthen water governance, enhance service delivery and ensure long-term sustainability in the water sector. Ministers of State Shri V. Somanna and Dr Raj Bhushan Choudhary, along with senior officials, participated in the deliberations focused on water resource management, drinking water and sanitation, river rejuvenation, irrigation efficiency and institutional reforms.

Shri Patil underscored the need for improved service quality, stronger financial planning and efficient use of public resources. He highlighted the importance of community participation, school-level awareness and scaling successful models across regions. He reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to transparent, citizen-focused delivery of water and sanitation services.

The Ministers of State stressed adopting an integrated approach to managing floods and droughts, improving the use of available data, promoting rainwater harvesting and ensuring efficient utilisation of surface and groundwater resources. They also highlighted the need to strengthen preparedness for climate-related challenges.

Senior officials emphasised reinforcing service delivery mechanisms, deepening convergence between schemes, strengthening institutions at all levels and building grassroots capacities. The Ministry will compile the key suggestions for follow-up action in consultation with relevant departments and States.

Infrastructure Transport

12 Jan 2026

Dhalbhumgarh Airport Faces 150-km Rule Hurdle

The issue has resurfaced following a recent statement by Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, who said that under existing aviation policy, a new greenfield airport is generally not permitted within an aerial distance of 150 kilometres of an operational civilian airport. He added, however, that if a formal proposal is submitted, its impact on the existing airport can be examined and relaxations may be considered on a case-by-case basis. While the clarification has revived some hope for Dhalbhumgarh, it has also underlined the scale of the technical challenge facing the project. Unde..

Stakeholders Seek Parallel Ops For Vizag Airports

With road and metro rail links to Bhogapuram still several years away, stakeholders in north Andhra Pradesh have renewed demands to continue civil operations at INS Dega even after the commissioning of Bhogapuram International Airport. The new airport is expected to begin commercial operations from June. Officials said close to 80 per cent of the airport infrastructure at Bhogapuram, including the terminal building and internal approach roads, has already been completed. However, inadequate external connectivity remains a key concern. Making a case for parallel operations, Andhra Pradesh Air ..

Govt To Roll Out V2V Tech To Cut Road Crashes

In an effort to curb road accidents, particularly in low-visibility conditions such as dense fog, the government is set to roll out vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology that will allow cars to exchange real-time data and alert drivers to potential dangers. The announcement was made by Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari after the 43rd meeting of the Transport Development Council. The technology involves installing an on-board unit (OBU) in vehicles, enabling wireless data exchange between nearby cars. This will allow vehicles to share information such as spee..