PM Modi Launches Atal Bhujal Yojana to Conserve Ground Water
- Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched Atal Bhujal Yojana (ATAL JAL) on December 25, 2019, on the occasion of the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- What is ATAL JAL? It is an initiative designed with the objective of strengthening the institutional framework for participatory groundwater management and bringing about behavioral changes at the community level for sustainable groundwater resource management in seven States namely Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
- Total Outlay: Rs. 6000 crore to be implemented over a period of 5 years (2020-21 to 2024-25).
- Of the total amount, 50% shall be in the form of World Bank loan, and be repaid by the Central Government.
- The remaining 50% shall be through Central Assistance from regular budgetary support.
- PM also named the Strategic Tunnel under Rohtang Pass after Vajpayee, meaning that the Rohtang Tunnel, connecting Manali, Himachal Pradesh with Leh, Ladakh and Jammu Kashmir, will now be known as Atal Tunnel.