Water Quality Testing Innovation Challenge launched

Water Quality Testing Innovation Challenge launched

Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Policies and Interventions

In news 

• The National Jal Jeevan Mission has launched an innovation challenge in partnership with Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade to develop portable devices for water testing.
• The National Jal Jeevan Mission invites applicants to join the Innovation Challenge to develop portable devices for water testing and become a part of this life changing Jan Aandolan. 

Key takeaways 

• Aim of the innovation challenge: To ensure that water sources are tested at various locations, at different levels; thereby, helping the policy framers to design programs which address the water contamination issues.
• Main objective: To bring an innovative, modular, and cost-effective solution to develop portable devices that can be used at the household level to test the drinking water quality instantly, easily and accurately.  
• People receiving piped water supply in their homes do not have any means to test the potability of water coming from their taps. 
• This leads to a situation where people are reluctant to consume tap water directly. 
• People in urban areas also end up installing household water treatment units incurring additional expenditure.
• The challenge aims to address these issues in an innovative, modular and cost-effective manner.

Important value additions 

Jal Jeevan Mission 

• In August, 2019, Government of India launched Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).
• JJM aims at providing potable water at service level of 55 litre per capita per day (LPCD) to every rural household through Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) by 2024.
• The fund sharing pattern between the Centre and states is 90:10 for Himalayan and North-Eastern States, 50:50 for other states, and 100% for Union Territories.
• It is under implementation in partnership with the States to enable every rural home to have tap water connection by 2024.
• Ministry: Ministry of Jal Shakti
• Aim of the mission: To provide every rural household potable tap water in adequate quantity and of prescribed quality on a regular and long-term basis.
• Water quality testing is one of the priority areas under Jal Jeevan Mission, the flagship programme of Union Government.
• Since announcement of the Jal Jeevan Mission, till 23rd December, 2020, so far 2.90 Crore households have been provided tap water connections, thus increasing the tap water supply from 3.23 Crore (17%) in August, 2019 to 6.13 Crore (32%) rural households of the country. 

Do you know? 

• The Uniform Drinking Water Quality Protocol, 2019 has specified some important parameters to be monitored for assuring portability of drinking water as per BIS IS 10500:2012 and subsequent amendments.

Related articles:

• Jal Jeevan Mission: Click here
• Margadarshika for Gram Panchayats and Paani Samitis: Click here