By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, April 17: Rajabala MLA Dr Mizanur Rahman Kazi on Thursday exposed irregularities in the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in Meghalaya, even revealing that a bogus tap connection exists in his name.
He slammed the state government for its tall claims surrounding the JJM’s implementation. He said while official figures and web portal updates paint a rosy picture, the reality on the ground is grimly different.
“On paper, it appears that the JJM scheme is doing very well. When I last inspected the Nekikona augmentation project, the progress of work was 10 to 15 per cent. However, the web portal displayed a 100 per cent completion of the work,” said Kazi.
“In fact, one tap connection in my name and at my house exists on paper only,” the MLA said, adding that JJM is not the only centrally-sponsored scheme suffering from such discrepancies.
“Even in PDS scheme, there are a lot of irregularities. I have raised the issue. The pressure groups have also raised issues surrounding JJM and PDS. There is a huge difference between the government’s claims and reality,” he said.
He demanded stern actions to address the rot within public welfare schemes.
“I believe harsh steps should be taken by the state government to ensure that the benefit of these schemes reach the people a 100 per cent,” Kazi said.
The JJM was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019 with the promise of providing ‘Functional Household Tap Connection’ to every rural household by 2024. However, despite repeated deadlines and assurances by the state government, the project is still a long way from completion in Meghalaya.
The government has now set December 2025 as the final deadline. Allegations of corruption, inflated progress reports, and paper-only connections are now threatening to derail what was billed as a flagship rural welfare scheme. Official figures from the JJM Dashboard claim that 5,29,885 households, or 81.98 per cent of the total target, have been provided with tap water connections. Out of 6,456 villages, 4,123 villages reportedly have achieved a 100 per cent coverage. South Garo Hills leads the tally with 90.82 per cent coverage.