New Delhi: The Rajasthan government is set to introduce a policy for sewerage and waste water management. The state government aims to implement it in over 70 cities and towns in the first phase of the programme.

The policy is framed to provide for wastewater collection, treatment facilities and reuse in irrigation and industrial areas.

“The idea behind this policy is that the time has come to put sewerage and waste water in priority. It is important that every household is connected with a functional toilet. Currently, there is no plan to use the waste water for productive uses. The policy has been brought in to change this. The parameter will be of international standards," said Manjit Singh, principal secretary, local self government.

The policy received approval from the state cabinet last week. Rajasthan is one of the first states in the country to launch such a policy, which will be launched in the next few months.

Under the first phase, places where at least 135 litre water per day is used by an individual, including all district headquarters, national capital region, heritage sites and cities with more than one lakh population will be covered.

The policy has been drafted with the objective to “overcome the shortage of water, for different purposes, use of potable water should mostly be for drinking purposes and re-use of water up to a certain quality after proper treatment of water for non-drinking purpose and last but not the least scientifically disposal of the remaining waste is the object behind formulating this policy".

The state government aims to strengthen the sewerage network in urban areas and reduce water logging.

“The target is to join sewerage and connect civic lines with a focus on agriculture. Rajasthan has a history of water issues and this will help in tackling that. In the first phase, we aim to connect 76 cities and towns. This will target almost 70% of our population in the next three years," Singh said.

The funding of the programme will be through various sources including public private partnership and hybrid annuity model. The state government will also look to tap into programmes launched by the central government such as the smart cities mission, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation, under which projects can also be taken up. The state government and municipalities will together decide on this.

“With sewerage not being tackled leads to health hazards as well. With this policy, that will also be treated. Health standards will improve which will help in increasing life expectancy in the state," Singh added.

The treated wastewater effluent will added to the water stock for reuse. “Priority shall be given to agricultural reuse of treated effluent for unrestricted irrigation. Blending of treated wastewater with fresh water shall be made to improve quality where possible. Crops to be irrigated by the treated effluent or blend thereof with freshwater resources shall be selected to suit the irrigation water, soil type and chemistry, and the economics of the reuse operations," said the policy.

Rajasthan, a desert state, has been struggling with a water crisis and in the last few months has launched programmes to address the issue of scarcity and conservation.

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