With the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) slowly taking centre-stage in the State’s water supply scene, the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) appears to be moving towards a comprehensive restructuring of staff and posts to facilitate the implementation of the centrally assisted initiative meant to equip rural households with water connections.
The KWA management on Thursday set in motion a set of restructuring measures at Jala Bhavan, the KWA headquarters, here. Meant to mobilise field staff “at the cutting-edge level for continuous interaction and monitoring of schemes,” the decision is expected to come into immediate effect, according to a July 23 order. Recruiting additional personnel for the JJM is not feasible, given the financial burden thrust upon the State government by COVID-19.
Kerala has steep targets with regard to the JJM. As per the latest plan update, 49.5 lakh rural households will have to be provided functional household tap connections (FHTC) by 2024. The FHTC target under the Annual Action Plan for 2020-21 has been jacked up from ten lakh connections to 20.07 lakh connections.
JJM being a mission, “urgency, accuracy, precision” must be ensured to provide 49.5 lakh FHTCs at 55 litres per capita per day (lpcd), the KWA has noted. Since the local self-government institutions have a prominent role to play in the JJM implementation, KWA officers will have to work in tandem with them. The JJM guidelines require the local bodies to bear 15% and beneficiaries 10% of the infrastructure expenses.
Three modes
To meet the 2024 target, KWA hopes to provide connections in three modes: 14.2 lakh connections through ‘retrofitting/augmenting/extending’ existing schemes; 9.3 lakh connections through ongoing projects; and 24.6 lakh connections through new schemes.
A section of KWA officers, however, feel a separate “rural vertical” is needed within KWA for the JJM to guarantee sustainability. While the July 23 decision may be adequate for the 2020-21 action plan, a dedicated structure within the KWA would become inevitable, given the difficulty levels of the targets for the subsequent years, the Association of Kerala Water Authority Officers (AKWAO) said. AKWAO has also suggested that the restructuring measures should be introduced in the lower, district-level rungs of the KWA hierarchy as well to mobilise personnel for JJM.