Budget 2026: Ministry of Jal Shakti witnesses biggest spending rollback

The Ministry of Jal Shakti has recorded the steepest gap between budgeted spending and revised estimates among all union ministries, raising concerns regarding execution of India’s largest rural drinking water programme — Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM). 

By the numbers 

• ₹1.07 lakh crore — budget allocated to the ministry of Jal Shakti in Union Budget 2025-26.
• ₹47,270 crore — revised estimate for 2024-25. 
• Gap of over ₹60,000 crore between budgeted and revised spending, a massive 56% shortfall. 

JJM was allocated a budget of ₹67,000 crore in the Union Budget 2025, however the revised estimate stands at mere ₹17,000 crore, a massive cut of ₹50,000 crore. 

This is not the first time, the Ministry of Jal Shakti or JJM has witnessed such a large gap between budgeted and revised estimates. 

In the previous Union Budget too, ministry was allocated ₹1.07 lakh crore and revised estimates stood at ₹58,000, translating into a 46% gap. 

What is Jal Jeevan Mission 

Launched in 2019, JJM aims to provide tap water connections to 19 crore rural households, ensure 55 litres per capita per day, improve water quality and sustainability, and promote community participation. 

The funding of the project is shared between the Centre and the states. The fund for the scheme is equally divided between the centre and all states except for Himalayan and North-Eastern states where the 90% of the funds are contributed by the centre. 

The Ministry of Jal Shakti operates through two departments: Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) which implements JJM and Swatch Bharat Mission and Department of Water Resources (DoWR) which manages water resources and river conservation. 

Two consecutive years of sharp spending rollbacks suggests serious concerns regarding implementation of the flagship scheme of the ministry.