Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation

The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation was a ministry of the Government of India formed in 2011. From May 2019, the ministry has been merged with the Ministry of Jal Shakti.[1]

Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation
Agency overview
Formed12 Jul 2011
Dissolved31 May 2019[1]
JurisdictionGovernment of India
Websitewww.mdws.gov.in

In 1999, the Department of Drinking Water Supply (DDWS) was formed under Ministry of Rural Development, for focused attention on drinking water and sanitation. Later it was renamed as Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation in 2010. In 2011, it was conferred the Ministry status, keeping in view the extreme importance given to the sector by the United Progressive Alliance government.[neutrality is disputed] The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation was the nodal department for the overall policy, planning, funding and coordination of programmes of drinking water and sanitation in the country.

Responsibilities

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The ministry was responsible for the implementation of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in rural India. It got 8 million toilets constructed surpassing the target of 6 million toilets for the year 2015–16.[2]

Notable decisions

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The Ministry has requested various governmental departments to avoid the usage of plastic bottles to provide drinking water during governmental meetings etc., and instead, to make arrangements for providing drinking water that do not result in the generation of plastic waste.[3][4][5]

Cabinet Ministers

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  • Note: MoS, I/C – Minister of State with Independent Charge
No. Portrait Minister
(Birth-Death)
Constituency
Term of office Political party Ministry Prime Minister
From To Period
1   Gurudas Kamat
(1954–2018)
MP for Mumbai North West

(MoS, I/C)
12 July
2011
13 July
2011
1 day Indian National Congress Manmohan II Manmohan Singh
2   Jairam Ramesh
(born 1954)
Rajya Sabha MP for Andhra Pradesh
13 July
2011
28 October
2012
1 year, 107 days
3   Bharatsinh Solanki
(born 1953)
MP for Anand

(MoS, I/C)
28 October
2012
26 May
2014
1 year, 210 days
4   Gopinath Munde
(1949–2014)
MP for Beed
27 May
2014
3 June
2014
(died in office)
7 days Bharatiya Janata Party Modi I Narendra Modi
5   Nitin Gadkari
(born 1957)
MP for Nagpur
4 June
2014
9 November
2014
158 days
6   Birender Singh
(born 1946)
Rajya Sabha MP for Haryana
9 November
2014
5 July
2016
1 year, 239 days
7   Narendra Singh Tomar
(born 1957)
MP for Gwalior
5 July
2016
3 September
2017
1 year, 60 days
8   Uma Bharti
(born 1959)
MP for Jhansi
3 September
2017
30 May
2019
1 year, 269 days
Ministry disestablished in 2019[a]
  1. ^ The ministry's competences were transferred to the Ministry of Jal Shakti.

Ministers of State

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No. Portrait Minister
(Birth-Death)
Constituency
Term of office Political party Ministry Prime Minister
From To Period
1   Upendra Kushwaha
(born 1960)
MP for Karakat
26 May
2014
9 November
2014
167 days Rashtriya Lok Samta Party Modi I Narendra Modi
2   Ram Kripal Yadav
(born 1957)
MP for Pataliputra
9 November
2014
5 July
2016
1 year, 239 days Bharatiya Janata Party
3   Ramesh Jigajinagi
(born 1952)
MP for Bijapur
5 July
2016
30 May
2019
2 years, 329 days
4   S. S. Ahluwalia
(born 1951)
MP for Darjeeling
3 September
2017
14 May
2018
253 days
Ministry disestablished in 2019

References

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  1. ^ a b "Govt forms 'Jal Shakti' Ministry by merging Water Resources and Drinking Water Ministries". Business Standard. 31 May 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
  2. ^ "Swachchh Mission Gallops in Villages". Dailypioneer.com. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Circular Waste Bottled" (PDF). himachal.nic. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  4. ^ "Plastic Bottles" (PDF). nbsslup.in. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  5. ^ "Avoiding use of bottled water during meetings" (PDF). aghp.gov. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
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