Budget 2025: Outcomes keep outlay for drinking water and sanitation intact

Given the transformative effect the two schemes have had on infant mortality and other health indicators, government has decided to keep the momentum going with similar levels of Budgetary allocations

One of the major focuses of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government ever since it assumed office in 2014 has been on improving sanitation coverage in both rural and urban areas, as well as providing clean drinking water. 

 

Two broad central schemes – Jal Jeevan Mission and the Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin – which aim to improve both sanitation and water coverage in villages had assumed marquee status after PM Modi repeatedly referred to them in his election speeches and other discourses as pathways to transforming the lives of people in rural India. 

 

Both schemes have also shown impressive results in reducing child mortality as well as improved health indicators for children across the country. As a consequence, the government has decided that funding for both the programmes should be maintained at more or less existing levels in order to continue reducing infant and under-five infant mortality rates.  

 

Transformational results  

 

The Economic Survey for financial year 2024-25 tabled in Parliament last week underscored both programmes’ strides in water management and rural sanitation, with a focus on community participation, technological interventions, and sustainable practices. 

 

It said the Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin Phase II, operational from 2020-21 to 2024-25, helped elevate villages from Open Defecation Free (ODF) to ODF Plus status. 

 

As of November 2024, it said that around 364,000 villages had achieved ODF Plus status, ensuring solid and liquid waste management and maintaining cleanliness standards. India has around 650,000 villages as per the 2011 Census, which is the last time it was conducted. 

 

"The Swachh Bharat Mission, launched in 2014, signifies a fundamental transformation in India's pursuit of universal sanitation access and has revolutionised the hygiene practices of a substantial portion of the Indian population. The Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 integrates comprehensive waste management and sanitation practices aligned with sustainability and circular economy principles," the Survey said, highlighting successful community-driven waste management models.  

 

On the rural drinking water front, the Survey found that the Jal Jeevan Mission has significantly expanded access to safe drinking water. Since its launch in 2019, the number of rural households with tap water connections has risen from 32.3 million (17 per cent) to 153 million (79.1 per cent) as of November 2024. 

 

Eight states – Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, Telangana and Mizoram – along with three Union Territories have achieved 100 per cent tap water coverage. 

 

The mission has also benefited households in arsenic- and fluoride-affected areas, ensuring safe drinking water for more than 3.4 million families through community water purification plants, the Economic Survey said. 

 

Data supports the schemes 

 

A survey released a few months back and published in ‘Nature’ journal said that the Swacch Bharat Mission may have helped prevent roughly 60,000–70,000 infant deaths annually. 

 

The authors studied data from 35 states and UTs, covering 640 districts over 10 years (2011–20), assessing infant mortality rates (IMR) and under-five mortality rates (U5MR) per 1,000 live births. 

 

“Toilet access and child mortality have a historically robust inverse association in India,” the paper said. The Nature study also found that toilet construction increased dramatically following the implementation of the SBM in 2014. Over 117 million toilets have been constructed since 2014 with a public investment of over Rs 1.4 trillion. 

 

Results from the analyses suggest that for every 10 per cent increase in district level toilet access due to SBM corresponds with a reduction in district level IMR by 0.9 per cent and U5MR by 1.1 per cent on average.  

 

There is further evidence of a threshold effect wherein district level toilet coverage of 30 per cent or more corresponds with substantial reductions in infant and child mortality. The study found that districts with over 30 per cent toilet coverage under SBM experienced reductions of 5.3 per cent in IMR and 6.8 per cent in U5MR per 1,000 live births. 

 

The study employed two-way fixed effects regression models to control for social demographics, wealth, and healthcare-related confounders at the district level, ensuring a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between sanitation improvements and child mortality. 

 

The study also highlights that expanded access to toilets under SBM likely reduced exposure to faecal-oral pathogens, contributing to lower incidences of diarrhoea and malnutrition, which are the main culprits behind child mortality in India.  

 

Funding continues apace  

 

Given their achievements, it should come as no surprise that both the marquee schemes have found strong financial backing in the Union Budget 2025 as well. 

 

Budget papers show that the Jal Jeevan Mission, which is the national rural drinking water scheme, got a budgetary allocation of around Rs 67,000 crore for FY26, despite its spending in FY25 being just about Rs 22,694 crore as per the Revised Estimate, against a Budget Estimate of Rs 70,163 crore. 

 

This means that actual spending on the rural drinking water scheme was nearly 67 per cent less than the outlay in FY25. 

 

Despite this, the allocation has been retained at almost the same level with a mere 4.5 per cent cut. 

 

This, some experts say, has been done to continue the momentum in spending, given the transformative impact the scheme has had on rural lives. 

 

Spending in FY25 was also low despite higher budgetary allocation because large chunks of the year had elections scheduled, which typically sees a reduction in the pace of public works. 

 

For the Swacch Bharat Mission-Gramin, the FY26 Budget Estimates has been pegged at Rs 7,192 crore, which is the same as both the BE and RE for FY25.  

 

Clearly, when it comes to rural drinking water and sanitation programmes, the government does not want the lack of funds to become a limiting factor.