Use tap-water plan for migrants’ jobs, Didi told

KOLKATA: The Centre has asked Bengal to engage jobless migrant workers who have flocked back to the state amid the lockdown in executing a Rs 2,757-crore rural tap water scheme with a target of 64.43 lakh connections within the next four to six months.
In a statement on Saturday, the Jal Shakti ministry assured the state of Rs 1,610 crore in the current fiscal to take up the project “on campaign mode”. An unutilised amount of Rs 1,146.5 crore from the last fiscal would complete the Centre’s share of the funding, it said.
Bengal panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee said the state government was yet to get details of the project. “The PHE department supplies water to households and several projects are underway. Such projects are being taken up in districts like Bankura and South 24 Parganas, too.”
PHE minister Shyamal Santra said at least four drinking water projects were already being implemented in each block. “Work slowed down after the lockdown, but has picked up again from May 30. It will take some time to start new projects as the departments concerned are working with skeletal staff... We are focusing on water-scarce districts. Workers are being roped in under the 100 days’ programme”.