New Delhi, Aug 31 (PTI) The Ministry of Jal Shakti will host the first departmental summit on water on September 1-2 at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan here, with the discussions focusing on key water sector priorities and Centre-state collaboration.
The summit is the first in a series of departmental summits envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a platform to strengthen cooperative federalism, foster collective ownership of national priorities and accelerate outcomes through closer Centre-State collaboration, the ministry said.
The Ministry said that the departmental summit model seeks to bring together political leadership and senior officials from the Union and state governments to jointly deliberate on sectoral priorities, share good practices, address implementation challenges and agree on time-bound actions for improved governance and service delivery.
The Water Departmental Summit, being the first in the series, marks the beginning of a new approach to institutionalised collaboration between the Centre and states in pursuit of national development objectives, it added.
The two-day summit will focus on four key thematic pillars — timely implementation of water infrastructure projects; Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari-Catch the Rain; source sustainability of drinking water systems; and operation and maintenance of rural drinking water supply schemes under Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0.
Discussions will cover project implementation, inter-agency coordination, water conservation, rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, digital monitoring, asset management and strengthening community-led water governance.
The consultations are expected to culminate in concrete and time-bound outcomes, including accelerated completion of ongoing projects, enhanced public participation in water conservation, strengthened sustainability of drinking water sources and improved accountability for reliable rural drinking water services.
Participating states will share their experiences, challenges and best practices and reach consensus on agreed outcomes, reinforcing the spirit of cooperative federalism and shared responsibility.
The participating states will present the key outcomes and action plans emerging from the deliberations before Modi during the valedictory session.
“The prime minister’s guidance is expected to further strengthen the collective resolve of the Centre and States and provide momentum for the effective and timely implementation of the agreed action points,” the ministry said. PTI ADI NB NB
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.