Dikho attends NE conference, seeks more fund
Source: Chronicle News Service

Senapati, September 16 2021: State's PHE minister Losii Dikho has said that household water connection in Manipur will be achieved by 2022 and sought more funds from the Centre to bear the cost of escalating prices of pipes against the actual estimates.

Losii Dikho stated this during the NE PHE ministers' conference held at Guwahati (Assam), which was attended by Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat aid PHE ministers of all North Eastern states and senior officials of the ministry ofJal Shakti.

During the conference, Dikho said that several people-oriented projects have been implemented while many are underway under Jal Jeevan Mission and Swachh Bharat Mission.

The Government of Manipur under the leadership of CM Biren Singh is committed to 'Har Ghar Jal' mission and state government is determined to provide tap water connection to 4,51,566 rural households in 2976 habitations and so far 52 percent of the target has been achieved.

The mission is funded from three different sources wherein JJM funding will cover 1,74,242 households costing Rs 1043.11 crore, NDB/EAP funding will cover 2,60,438 households costing Rs 1538.86 crore and under other funding will cover 16,886 households costing Rs 50.00 crore.

So far, Manipur has covered 2,37,686 households (52.64%) and is hopeful of achieving the mission by 2022, Dikho informed the gathering.

He maintained that the government of Manipur has inaugurated 85 Water Supply Schemes under JJM and other schemes including six in inspirational Chandel district.

In respect of Chandel district, all the six inaugurated water supply schemes are for villages located in remote area near the Indo-Myanmar international border where communication is difficult due to terrain and weather.

Moreover, another 48 Water Supply Schemes will be inaugurated in the month of September and October, he informed.

Highlighting some of the difficulties, the state PHE minister narrated that progress of the ongoing projects was slowed down since April due to the second wave of Covid-19 and related curfew imposed by the state government but the department is trying its best to speed up the pace of executing work.

There are other challenging issues like hilly terrain, accessibility problem and landslide but PHE officials are working day and night for providing household water connection even in the smallest and remote village, he said.

With regard to 100 days mission for providing tap connection to school, Anganwadi and Ashramsala (residential schools in tribal areas), the state has achieved 92.30 percent in school and 91.09 percent in Anganwadi and will complete the missing this year, he added.

Under Swachh Bharat Mission (G) Phase-II, Manipur PHED has constructed four units of Solid Waste Management, 16 units of Liquid Waste Management and 17 units of Plastic Waste Management, the minister said.

The PHE minister concluded his presentation by seeking more funds from the Ministry of Jal Shakti based on the abnormal increase in the cost of pipes due to increase in the price of steel.

Comment