Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Paatil on Thursday chaired the first Regional Conference on Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) 2.0 in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, the Ministry of Jal Shakti said. The two-day conference, held on November 12-13, was organised by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation in collaboration with the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Source: NewKerala (Ministry of Jal Shakti)

Senior officials and representatives from seven southern States and Union Territories — Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Keralam, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Puducherry and Lakshadweep — took part to review progress, address challenges and strengthen sustainable rural drinking water services.

Source: Tezzbuzz

16 crore households connected, December 2027 appeal

Paatil said household tap water connections have reached about 16 crore rural households under the mission. He emphasised that the remaining works must be completed within the approved mission timeline of December 2028, and appealed to states to make concerted efforts to complete them by December 2027, wherever feasible.

The conference is a follow-up to the Departmental Summit on Water held on September 1-2, 2026, and is aimed at carrying the summit's decisions down to state, district and village level. Ashok K K Meena, Secretary of the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, described the Tiruchirappalli meeting as the first of five regional conferences planned for that purpose.

Source: Tezzbuzz

What happens next

Four more regional conferences are to follow the Tiruchirappalli meeting, as the Centre and states work through the remaining tap-water connections and the shift under JJM 2.0 from building infrastructure to sustaining services.

JJM 2.0 is the extended phase of the Jal Jeevan Mission, India's flagship programme to provide functional household tap connections to rural homes, with the mission timeline now running to December 2028.