Under JJM, States/ UTs are to plan for achieving drinking water security and to provide FHTC to every rural household. It may not be feasible for State Government/ Department to manage water supply to everyone and therefore role of Gram Panchayat and/ or its sub-committee/ local community becomes critical in planning, implementation, management, operation and maintenance of water supply within the villages. Moreover, Panchayats have a constitutional mandate to manage drinking water. Further, it is necessary that within the villages, local community/Gram Panchayat and/ or its sub-committee, i.e. VWSC/Paani Samiti/ User Group, etc. plays the key role for O&M, cost recovery, and good governance. To achieve the objective of JJM, following strategy may be adopted:

• Re-verification and firming of baseline data of household tap connections by States/ UTs before March, 2020
• FHTC may be planned to be provided in every household with three delivery points (taps),viz. kitchen, washing & bathing area and toilet.
• The rural water supply infrastructure created over the years is to be dovetailed, retrofitted and renovated to provide FHTCs.
• Priority will be accorded to retrofit on-going piped water supply schemes and subsequently to     completed piped water supply schemes providing water through stand post.
• In villages with sufficient groundwater availability of prescribed quality within the village boundary, the same local water source will be used.
• In villages with functional hand pumps, the depth can be deepened if required and can also be used as a source to meet the service delivery level.
• In tribal/ hilly/ forested areas, option of gravity and/ or solar power-based water supply schemes with low O&M expenditure to be explored and preferred.
• In hills and mountains, springs as a reliable source for drinking water to be explored.
• In hot and cold deserts, innovative approaches and possibility technology intervention will be explored.
• In villages with sufficient groundwater availability but having quality issues, in-situ suitable treatment technology may be explored.
• In villages falling in drought-prone areas, conjunctive use of multiple sources of water can be such as ponds, lakes, rivers, groundwater, supply from long distance, rainwater harvesting and/ or artificial recharge.