* Only 20 per cent of the urban population has access to potable water.
GUWAHATI, June 24: The NITI Aayog has asked the Government of Assam to initiate measures for improving the quality of potable water in the rural areas.
Bracketting Assam with the ‘North-eastern and Himalayan States’ category, the Aayog in its CWMI performance report for the financial year 2016-17 pointed out the sectors where Assam needs to make significant improvements.
The report stated that in rural drinking water only 60 per cent of rural habitation have been fully covered, and there has been no improvement in water quality.
On the other hand with respect to the urban water sector, the report said that only 20 per cent of the urban population has access to potable water and added that no waste water is treated.
In North Eastern and Himalayan States, Tripura has been adjudged number one in 2016-17 followed by Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Assam.
NITI Aayog proposes to publish these ranks on an annual basis in future.
Of all States,ranging from 26 to 31, this low performance involves low score across almost all indicator themes.
The CWMI is an important tool to assess and improve the performance of States/Union Territories in efficient management of water resources.
The CWMI has been developed by NITI Aayog comprising nine broad sectors with 28 different indicators covering various aspects of ground water, restoration of water bodies, irrigation, farm practices, drinking water, policy and governance.