Bringing water to Lohgad : Jal Jeevan Mission

Bringing water to Lohgad : Jal Jeevan Mission 

Water is the elixir of life. Imagine living without it for even a single day. We follow the maxim, "Atithi Devo Bhava" in India where guests are considered to be Gods.  Offering a glass of water to every guest is a part of culture and a basic courtesy. Fetching it from the fridge or even from the taps fitted with RO or aqua guard in our homes is so easy. And while we soak in our bath tubs or cool ourselves under the shower there are millions of people in rural India who have no access  to drinking water in their homes.
Women and girls have to trudge for many kilometers to get drinking water for themselves and their families. Many times such water is contaminated .
The Government of India therefore launched the ambitious program of Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure pure drinking water reaches every rural home through functional taps so that women and girls are freed from their drudgery.  The central and state governments have an equal share in the expenditure for implementing the project.

Despite covid more than fifty percent of the rural households in Maharashtra have been provided with piped drinking water from taps with at least 40 litres per capita per person drinking water.  The Jal Jeevan Mission envisages that all rural households should receive at least 55 litres per capita per person everyday. 
A lot of projects are in progress in Maharashtra. Post covid things are different and there is a restriction on travel. It was only since the last week that I have mustered courage to steer out on visits. 
When I decided to visit an ongoing piped water supply scheme at Lohgad in Pune little did I realise that I would actually be visiting a village at the foothill of the fort where the famous and revered leader, Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had kept his treasures brought from Surat.
The road winding up the hill reaching the village made me nostalgic as I remembered my trips to the fort as a student of history at the Pune University.
The cool breeze,  the pleasant weather, the blue skies and the greenery filled me with joy. I was already in great spirits when we reached the foothills of the fort. A huge tank at the base of the fort would be catering to one side of the village. Smt. Alka Ganesh Dhanivale, member of the Zilla Parishad Pune of the Panchayat Samiti took great pride in telling us about the efforts made by herself and her team to make this possible.
The Executive Engineer, Deputy Engineer and his team led us to the percolation well at end of the lane which was the source of water for the scheme. The other side of the village would be catered by an Elevated Surface Reservoir which was under construction and would soon be completed.  A good samaritan, Mr. Atul Barot has promised additional supply of water in the well if and when required. The Sectional Engineer, Shri. Rajendra Sonawane had really put in all efforts to complete the scheme despite the fact that Covid 19 set in as soon as the work started.  
An informal chat with Smt. Bhagabai Krishna Gaike a senior citizen revealed how excited she was that tapped water would be soon reaching their homes. Her eyes shone with hope as it was something which she had never dreamt would ever happen.
Lohgad, is a popular tourist destination,  regular supply of drinking water would boost the local economy. The people were really excited about the fact that the new year 2021 would be different for them when water would reach their homes. There was joy in my heart and a swagger in my feet as we trudged past the fort and left for our next visit.
I could see the ramparts of the iron like Lohgad fort standing tall. I was reminded of my lessons in history. Jal Jeevan Mission would soon be creating history again by bringing water to the homes on the Lohgad Fort. I smiled for  I knew, the coming year would certainly be different and happy.

Drinking water from taps in Aadne Village of Vasai....

Drinking water from taps in Aadne Village of Vasai....

It was a busy monday morning devoid of  morning blues. I was on my way to Palghar to attend a review meeting held by the Hon'ble Minister for Water Supply and Sanitation,  Shri. Gulabraoji Patil.
The soft brilliance of the morning sunlight,  the cars speeding on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad National Highway and the trees on the roadside made me smile. I love going on field visits because one learns so much by seeing the actual implementation of projects in the districts and interacting with beneficiaries. 
The detailed review by the Hon'ble Minister  ended in the realisation of the fact that there was much to do. Maharashtra is one among the many states affected by seasonal drought and water scarcity. Palghar being a tribal district with undulated lands, difficult  topography, isolated and distant habitats has it's own local issues. So ensuring hundred percent success in providing drinking water to all households has to be planned meticulously. Overall too,  for the state as a whole, a lot of policy planning and strategy would be required for the implementation. Ultimately it is the people and the local communities who actually need to be involved in bringing about effective sustainable change in creating,  managing and maintaining drinking water. 
While a lot of thought has been given to create sources for irrigation and augment it, the Jal Jeevan Mission envisages provision of potable, piped drinking water to every rural home by 2024 with the lofty ideal of relieving rural women and girls  from the drudgery of fetching water for the family from long distances.
With the central and state governments contributing equally the ambitious project includes ten percent contribution by the village. 
Despite the challenges of Covid 19, Maharashtra has crossed the fifty percent mark in terms of achievement. This is mainly due to the projects which have been completed under the National Rural Drinking Water Programme and the Chief Minister's Drinking Water Programme. Functional Household Tap Connections ( FHTC ) are now being given through retrofitting in these water supply schemes under the Jal Jeevan Mission. 

My visit to a piped water supply ( PWS)  scheme in Aadne village of the Vasai block after the meeting was a great learning. To most of us Vasai is an urban extension of Mumbai however it also has many tribal villages.
The Panchayat Samiti Sabhapati had travelled all the way to be with me. She along with the Gram Sewak, Sarpanch and the villagers took me to the well which was the source of  the PWS. Solar energy is the best mode for power in remote areas and it was a pleasure to see that the pumping of the PWS was done through solar energy. I was introduced to Mr.Santosh Dudaaji Patil whose father had donated land for the well and pumphouse.  His eyes shone with pride as he shared that it was his father,  Shri.Dudaaji Patil who donated land for the well and the pumphouse. I was wonderstruck to hear that another villager, Mr.Baban Mithu Jadhav had donated land for the Elevated Surface Reservoir. On speaking to him I found out that he had worked for 27 years in Mumbai at Nilons and had also been the Sarpanch of the village. I was amazed by modesty and humility of both these persons who had shown such magnanimity by donating a portion of their land for the welfare of their village.
The scheme had provided water to 175 homes and the remaining would be provided soon. The Aadne Water Supply Scheme was to ultimately benefit 1825 homes. The ladies and the families of the homes we visited were happy that water was reaching their homes. They were all willing to contribute for the operation and maintenance.
Jal Jeevan Mission essentially aims at ensuring ten percent contribution from the community to ensure ownership of the scheme. Involvement of local village community or gram panchayats and user groups in planning, implementation, management, operation and maintenance of water supply systems in villages would ensure long-term sustainability to achieve drinking water security.
The Jal Jeevan Mission is a jan andolan, a people's movement reaching out to every rural household and ensuring that they get a  functional household tap connection providing 55 litres per capita per day. Seeing water flowing freely from the taps was very satisfying. As I sipped water from tap and left from the village the twilight had filled the sky with colours as joyful as those in my heart. 

आशा....

आशा....

यूँही  हताश  कभी
यूँही  निराश कभी
मन को  खोजा  है  मैंने
कभी बाहर
कभी  अंदर
कभी  गली  कूचे  राहों  मेँ
कभी घर की चार दीवारों मेँ
कभी दोस्तों  मेँ
कभी परिवारवालों  में 

कभी फेसबुक और चाहनेवालों में 
कभी किताबों  मे  लिखें  फलसफों  मे
कभी  हाथों  मे  बनी  लकीरों  मे
कभी  कोरे  कागज़  के  पन्नों  पर
कभी  समंदर के  लहरों  पर
कभी व्यस्त दिनचर्या  मे
कभी ऑफिस के फाइलों पर
कभी आसमान के चाँद सितारों मे
कभी कड़ी  धूपवाली  दोपहर  में
कभी अनोखे सुनहले  शाम  मे
कभी  पेड़ो  की  गहरी छाओं में
कभी  घने  बादलों  की  घटा में
कभी  बहते हुए आंसुओं  में
कभी अंतरंग की गहराईयों  में
कभी डूबते हुए आस  में
कभी  सिसकती हुए साँसों में
हर बार लौटी हूँ
हौसले  के  साथ
मन में यही  विश्वास  लिए
कि रात  के  बाद फिर सुबह  होगी
कि लौट आएगी  फिर रौशनी
कि खिल उठेगी जीवन  फिर से
और मुस्कुराएंगे  हम  मन  से ...
क्योंकि  जीवन  निराशा  से नहीं
आशा से  चलती  है
सिर्फ आशा  से ....

मन विमल 

सदा के लिए दोस्त....

सदा के लिये दोस्त...
हवा के सर्द झोंके की तरह तुम लूभावने
समंदर के सूक्ष्म गहराइयो की तरह दिलकश
सुबह की भीनी धूप की तरह तुम ताज़ा
सांझ में गोधूलि की तरह अनोखे
रात के चन्द्रमा की तरह सुन्दर
रत्नो में कोहिनूर की तरह अद्वितीय
आँखों में काजल की तरह स्पष्ट
निर्मल जल के प्रवाह की तरह नीशकपट
मन के तारों से बंधे गीतों की तरह मधुर
इसलिए ही तो शायद ना मिलकर भी हम जुड़े रहते
और जब मिल जाते अचानक मनाने को कुछ ख़ास
तो जी उठते है
सुर्ख रातो में पवन के झोंके की तरह शीतल
याद भी ना रहता के दिन, महीने, साल गुज़र गए बिन मिले
और लगता कल ही तो मिले थे हम
ना फ़ासले रहते, ना दरमियाँ हमारे बीच
गर कुछ होता तो सिर्फ यह एहसास
की जुड़े रहेंगे मन हमारे सदा सदा 
दोहराते रहेंगे हम ये जज़्बा वफ़ा वफ़ा....

मन विमल