Punjab rural water supply and sanitation project: Problems faced by rwss committees

The main aim of the paper is to explore the problems faced by Rural Water Supply Committees. Punjab Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project is an initiative of Government of Punjab and Government of India and World Bank. The project is designed to reform the Water Supply and Sanitation sector in the Rural Areas of the Punjab State. The Punjab State comprises of 20 districts having 12248 villages with 11930 gram panchayats. Rural population of the State is 166 million. Towards this end, Department of Water Supply and Sanitation (DWSS) Punjab has developed a new Rural Water Supply & Sanitation (RWSS) policy framework. Department of Water Supply and Sanitation, Punjab in the year 2004 established a Rural Water Supply & Sanitation Project costing Rs. 1819.35 crore to the Department of Drinking Water Supply, Ministry of Rural Development, and Government of India for recommending the same to World Bank for providing financial assistance. Thereafter the project appraised, negotiated and approved by the Board of Directors, World Bank. The core of the project is to make people self reliant through community participation for drinking water supply. So the present paper also explores the financial, technical and cooperation related problems committees.