“Drink from Tap” Programme launched by CM Shri. Naveen Patnaik at Salia Sahi in Bhubaneswar & Masani Chandi in Puri. Bhubaneswar becomes 1 st one million plus city in India having 100% water pipe connections to all households . Odisha to become 1 st State in India to provide Pipe Water connection to all households in urban areas by March, 2022
Bhubaneswar (Kalinga Voice) : Chief Minister Shri. Naveen Patnaik today virtually launched the SUJAL- “Drink from Tap Mission” The project’s prime aim is to ensure quality tapped drinking water for more than 1.5 million people in more than 15 urban areas. The Chief Minister attended the event through video conference from Naveen Niwas and other officials were present in respective offices at Bhubaneswar and Puri. By launching this project Odisha joins the league of developed countries like US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, etc. where people drink directly from Tap without need for boiling water, filtering or Aquaguard, etc. In India only in airports one can drink from tap system.
This will provide poor people with clear and pure water. It will
reduce the expenditure of the poor people for obtaining clean and pure water and prevent water-borne diseases from spreading. Tap quality water will be supplied to 12 pilot areas of Bhubaneswar and Puri benefitting 1.8 lakh population. Rs.1300 Crores to be spent by Odisha Government to provide Drink from Tap quality water to households benefitting 15 lakh population in 15 towns of Odisha. This Mission will help to reduce plastic pollution from mineral water bottles and help in conserving and protecting the environment and ecology.
Launching the programme, CM Shri. Naveen Patnaik said, “With this, the people of both the cities will benefit. He has directed that this programme be expanded to each region of the State in a phase wise manner.” CM further added, “Puri is a tourist hub. Many tourists come. They use plastic bottled water. This programme will reduce this plastic pollution in Puri.”
Addressing from Bhadrak, Minister Pratap Jena said that Odisha has become the first state in the country to drink from Tap Mission today due to the strong leadership and inspiration of the Chief Minister. He said the Department of Housing and Urban Development has been working hard to bring transformation under 5-T programme .
Joining the event from Delhi, Shri Durga Shankar Mishra, Secretary, Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, congratulated the Government of Odisha on the occasion and said that Odisha has achieved something, which is the first in the country. This will bring great change in many areas. “The use of technology, the use of Jal Sathi , energy conservation, the control of waterborne diseases and so on, can be drastically changed,” he said.
5-T Secretary Shri. V. Karthikeyan Pandian said, “Chief Minister expressed his desire to launch the Drink from Tap programme from Salia Sahi. By this initiative, the people of Salia Sahi will benefit from modern scientific technology and drink pure drinking water through piped connections to all households.
The Drink from Tap program will be expanded to all 144 Urban Local Bodies in a phase-wise manner Nine wards in Bhubaneswar covered with 19,000 households and benefitting 1,14,000 population. Two wards in Puri covered with 3,785 households and benefitting 70,000 population (including 50000 floating population). 4 cities including Bhubaneswar have achieved 100% piped water connections. By March 2021, another 50 cities will have 100% piped water connections and by March 2022, all 114 cities in Odisha would achieve 100% piped water connections.
Minister Ashok Panda and MLA North Bhubaneswr Sushant Raut were in Salia Sahi and Minister Trusharkanti Behera and MLA Jayant Sadangi were present in Puri on the occasion.
Water Aid, United Kingdom Chief Executive Mr. Tim Wainwright said the deployment Jalasathi in this programme is an innovative initiative. The whole world has to learn from this. “India, especially Odisha, has made significant progress in the Drink from Tap Mission,” he said. He promised that the UK Water Aid would provide all possible assistance to Odisha for the program.
Principal Secretary Housing and Urban Development, Shri G.S. Mathivathanan delivered the welcome address and EIC PHEO gave the vote of thanks . The event was graced by Chief Adviser to the Chief Minister’s Office, the Chief Secretary to the Government, the Development Commission and many dignitaries .
