Andreasujg at 09:09, 24 February 2026

2026-02-24T09:09:08Z

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{{Short description|Water conservation campaign of the Government of India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026}}
{{Infobox government agency
| agency_name = Jal Shakti Abhiyan
| native_name = जल शक्ति अभियान
| native_name_a =
| logo =
| logo_caption =
| formed = {{Start date|2019|07|01|df=y}}
| preceding1 =
| jurisdiction = [[India]]
| headquarters = [[New Delhi]]
| minister1_name = [[C. R. Patil]]
| minister1_pfo = [[Minister of Jal Shakti]]
| parent_agency = [[Ministry of Jal Shakti]]
| website = {{URL|jsactr.mowr.gov.in}}
}}

The '''Jal Shakti Abhiyan''' ({{translation|Water Power Campaign}}) is a [[water conservation]] campaign of the [[Government of India]], administered by the [[Ministry of Jal Shakti]]. Launched on 1 July 2019 by Union Minister [[Gajendra Singh Shekhawat]], the campaign was conceived as a response to acute [[water scarcity in India|water stress across India]].<ref name="bstandard">{{cite news |title='Jal Shakti Abhiyan': Govt launches water conservation campaign |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/jal-shakti-abhiyan-govt-launches-water-conservation-campaign-119070100897_1.html |newspaper=[[Business Standard]] |agency=[[Press Trust of India|PTI]] |date=1 July 2019 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> In its initial phase, the programme targeted 256 water-stressed districts identified by the Central Ground Water Board.<ref name="pib-launch">{{cite press release |title=Jal Shakti Abhiyan for Water Conservation Launched |url=https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=191069 |publisher=[[Press Information Bureau]] |date=1 July 2019 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> Since 2021, it has operated under the expanded name "Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain" and has been conducted annually across all districts in the country.<ref name="pmindia-ctr">{{cite web |title=PM to launch 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain' campaign on 22nd March |url=https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/pm-to-launch-jal-shakti-abhiyancatch-the-rain-campaign-on-22nd-march/ |website=Prime Minister of India |date=22 March 2021 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref>

== Background ==

A 2018 report by [[NITI Aayog]], titled the ''Composite Water Management Index'', stated that approximately 600 million people in India faced high to extreme water stress.<ref name="niti-aayog">{{cite web |title=NITI Aayog Report on Water Crisis |url=https://www.pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=195635 |website=Press Information Bureau |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> The report warned that 21 major cities, including [[Delhi]], [[Bangalore|Bengaluru]], [[Chennai]], and [[Hyderabad]], risked running out of [[groundwater]] by 2030, and that the crisis could cost up to six per cent of India's [[gross domestic product]] by 2050.<ref>{{cite news |title=India has just five years to solve its water crisis, experts fear |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/27/india/india-water-crisis-intl-hnk |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=27 June 2019 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref><ref name="niti-aayog" /> India holds 18 per cent of the world's population but has access to only four per cent of global freshwater resources; per capita [[water supply|water availability]] had declined to approximately 1,100 [[cubic metre]]s, below the internationally recognised water stress threshold of 1,700 cubic metres.<ref>{{cite web |title=India's latest crisis: 600 million people struggle with drought |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/india-s-latest-crisis-600-million-people-struggle-drought |website=[[Lowy Institute]] |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> Groundwater, which supplies over 60 per cent of [[irrigation in India|irrigated agriculture]] and 85 per cent of rural [[drinking water]] in India, had experienced a significant increase in extraction over the preceding decades.<ref>{{cite web |title=On Day Zero, India prepares for a water emergency |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/nindia.2019.84 |website=[[Nature (journal)|Nature India]] |date=2019 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref>

In May 2019, the Government of India formed the [[Ministry of Jal Shakti]] by merging the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation with the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.<ref name="bstandard" /> Prime Minister [[Narendra Modi]], in his ''[[Mann Ki Baat]]'' radio address, called on citizens to treat water conservation as a [[Mass movement (politics)|mass movement]] comparable to the [[Swachh Bharat Mission]].<ref name="pib-launch" />

== First phase (2019) ==

The Jal Shakti Abhiyan was launched on 1 July 2019 as a time-bound, mission-mode campaign in 1,592 blocks across 256 water-stressed districts.<ref name="pib-launch" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Neerain |date=2026-02-05 |title=Jal Shakti Abhiyan & Rainwater Harvesting: Homeowner's Participation Guide |url=https://neerain.com/jal-shakti-abhiyan/ |access-date=2026-02-24 |website=NeeRain |language=en-US}}</ref> Implementation occurred in two phases: the first from 1 July to 15 September 2019, coinciding with the [[monsoon of South Asia|southwest monsoon]], and the second from 1 October to 30 November 2019 for states receiving the northeast retreating monsoon.<ref name="pib-launch" />

The campaign focused on five interventions: [[rainwater harvesting|water conservation and rainwater harvesting]]; renovation of traditional [[water body|water bodies]] and tanks; reuse of water and recharge of [[tube well|bore wells]]; [[watershed management|watershed development]]; and intensive [[afforestation]].<ref name="pib-launch" /><ref name="bstandard" /> These were supported by the development of block- and district-level water conservation plans and the promotion of efficient [[irrigation]] through [[Krishi Vigyan Kendra]]s.<ref name="pib-launch" /> The programme was coordinated by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation with the participation of multiple central ministries and [[states and union territories of India|state governments]].<ref name="pib-launch" />

''[[Down To Earth (magazine)|Down To Earth]]'', an Indian environmental magazine, reported that while the campaign was built on the principle of citizen participation, it lacked clearly defined and measurable outcome targets.<ref name="dte-analysis">{{cite web |title=Jal Shakti Abhiyan: What can make it more impactful |url=https://www.downtoearth.org.in/water/jal-shakti-abhiyan-what-can-make-it-more-impactful-66878 |website=[[Down To Earth (magazine)|Down To Earth]] |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref>

== Catch the Rain expansion (2021–present) ==

The campaign was not conducted in 2020 due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic in India]]. On 22 March 2021, [[World Water Day]], Prime Minister Modi launched "'''Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain'''" with the slogan "Catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls."<ref name="pmindia-ctr" /> Unlike the 2019 campaign, this expanded programme covered all blocks in all districts across India, encompassing both rural and urban areas.<ref name="pmindia-ctr" /><ref name="nwm-ctr">{{cite web |title=Catch the Rain |url=https://nwm.gov.in/catch-rain |website=National Water Mission, Ministry of Jal Shakti |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> The programme has been conducted annually since, with each edition carrying a thematic focus.<ref name="nwm-ctr" />

The 2024 edition adopted the theme "Nari Shakti se Jal Shakti" (Women's Power for Water Power), emphasising the role of women in water conservation.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Union Minister for Jal Shakti Launches Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain 2024 Campaign |url=https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2013162 |publisher=Press Information Bureau |date=2024 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> The 2025 edition, launched from [[Panchkula]], [[Haryana]], by Union Minister [[C. R. Patil]], focused on grassroots engagement in 148 districts identified by the Central Ground Water Board.<ref>{{cite news |title=Nationwide 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain' campaign launched from Panchkula |url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/nationwide-jal-shakti-abhiyan-catch-the-rain-campaign-launched-from-pkula/ |newspaper=[[The Tribune (Chandigarh)|The Tribune]] |date=22 March 2025 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref><ref name="pib-2025">{{cite press release |title=Ministry of Jal Shakti to Launch 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain – 2025' on World Water Day |url=https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2113865 |publisher=Press Information Bureau |date=March 2025 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref>

== Outcomes ==

According to government figures, over 46 lakh (4.6 million) water conservation and rainwater harvesting works were completed or initiated between the March 2021 launch and December 2021, alongside the planting of over 36 [[crore]] (360 million) saplings.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kumar |first=G. Asok |title=Note on Jal Shakti Abhiyan – Catch The Rain campaign |url=https://asokji.in/sites/default/files/Jal%20Shakti%20Abhiyan-Catch%20The%20Rain%2007022022.pdf |date=7 February 2022 |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> By 2024, the government reported that 24.24 lakh (2.4 million) water bodies had been enumerated in what it described as the country's first such census, and more than 670 Jal Shakti Kendras (water resource centres) had been established across [[states and union territories of India|states and union territories]].<ref name="pib-2025" />

[[WaterAid]] India, in an analytical report on the campaign, noted instances of significant community mobilisation at the district level, including participatory vulnerability assessments and water budgeting.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Analysis and Learnings |url=https://www.wateraid.org/in/sites/g/files/jkxoof336/files/jal-shakti-abhiyan-analysis-and-learning.pdf |website=[[WaterAid]] India |access-date=16 February 2026}}</ref> However, independent evaluations of overall programme effectiveness remain limited, and the government's reported statistics have not been subject to comprehensive third-party audit.<ref name="dte-analysis" />

== Relationship to other programmes ==

The Jal Shakti Abhiyan is distinct from the [[Jal Jeevan Mission]], which aims to provide piped [[drinking water]] to every rural household, and from the [[Atal Bhujal Yojana]], a [[World Bank]]-supported [[groundwater]] management programme.<ref name="pib-launch" /> The government has described these programmes as operating in convergence, with the Jal Shakti Abhiyan serving as the umbrella campaign for community-level water conservation and awareness.<ref name="nwm-ctr" />

== See also ==
* [[Water scarcity in India]]
* [[Jal Jeevan Mission]]
* [[Ministry of Jal Shakti]]
* [[Swachh Bharat Mission]]
* [[Atal Bhujal Yojana]]
* [[Namami Gange Programme]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website|jsactr.mowr.gov.in}}
* [https://nwm.gov.in/catch-rain Catch the Rain] – National Water Mission

[[Category:Water conservation in India]]
[[Category:Government schemes in India]]
[[Category:2019 establishments in India]]
[[Category:Water supply and sanitation in India]]

Jal Shakti Abhiyan - Revision history

Andreasujg at 09:09, 24 February 2026