As monsoon arrives, Rajnandgaon is ready to #CatchTheRain through Mission Jal Raksha

📌 Summary:

• Rajnandgaon district (Chhattisgarh) has emerged as a frontrunner in the nationwide #CatchTheRain campaign through its pioneering 'Mission Jal Raksha'
• Uses advanced technologies — GIS mapping, remote sensing, aquifer mapping, Digital Elevation Models (DEM) and ridge-to-valley planning — to identify optimal groundwater recharge sites
• Field interventions include converting defunct borewells into recharge shafts and building mini percolation tanks integrated with deep injection wells to recharge deep aquifers in hard-rock terrain
• Evolved into a people's movement (Jan Bhagidari) with farmers, women, youth and Gram Panchayats adopting water budgeting and behavioural change
• Crop diversification: nearly 70% of summer paddy shifted to less water-intensive crops, reducing groundwater pressure
• Measurable outcomes: 60,000+ water conservation/recharge structures across 662 villages; 500+ defunct borewells converted; 600+ injection wells with 1,700+ mini percolation tanks; 2,500+ water bodies geo-tagged
• Generated 51 lakh+ person-days of employment; average groundwater level rose by approximately 2.04 metres, strengthening irrigation and drinking water security

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS1/GS3 — Water resources, groundwater management, rainwater harvesting, and community-led (Jan Bhagidari) water security.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• #CatchTheRain — Ministry of Jal Shakti campaign ('Catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls')
• Mission Jal Raksha — Rajnandgaon district (Chhattisgarh) water conservation initiative
• Average groundwater level rise recorded: ~2.04 metres

🔑 Key Term: Managed aquifer recharge — deliberately channelling rainwater/runoff into aquifers (through recharge shafts, injection wells and percolation tanks) to replenish groundwater.