Water is a State subject and the Central Government supplements the efforts of the States on water conservation and recharge, including rainwater conservation and its harvesting, through technical and financial support. However, Government of India has been implementing various schemes for rainwater conservation and its harvesting in with convergence with Schemes of the States Governments and with people’s participation. One of the such major initiatives of Government of include ‘Jal Shakti Abhiyan’ (JSA) in 1,592 blocks of 256 water-stressed districts of the country during July to November 2019 to promote water conservation and water resource management by focusing on water conservation & rainwater harvesting, renovation of traditional and other water bodies/ tanks, reuse, and recharge of bore wells, watershed development and intensive afforestation. Third in the series of JSA, ‘Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch The Rain’ – 2022 in the current year has been launched on 29 March, 2022 in all districts (rural as well as urban areas) of the country with the main theme “Catch the Rain, where it falls, when it falls”. Water conservation and rainwater harvesting is one of the focused interventions of the campaign. National Water Policy, inter-alia, advocates water conservation and rain water harvesting, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and (AMRUT-II), Atal Bhujal Yojana etc also include rain water harvesting.

Interventions Progress under JSA-2019 was as under:-

Water Conservation & Rain Water Harvesting 2,73,256	Renovation of Traditional & Other Water Bodies/Tanks 44,497	Reuse and Recharge Structures 1,42,740
Watershed Development 1,59,354	Intensive Afforestation (Saplings planted) 12,35,99,566	Block Water Conservation Plan 1,372

 

The progress of the Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain campaign of 2021 as uploaded on JSA:CTR Portal (jsactr.mowr.nic.in) from 22.3.2021 to 28.03.2022 are as follows:-

• (i) Water Conservation & Rainwater Harvesting Structures: 16,22,957; (ii) Renovation of Traditional Water Bodies: 2,96,958; (iii) Reuse and Recharge Structures: 8,31,961; (iv) Watershed Development: 19,18,395; (v) Intensive Afforestation: 36,75,68,460; and Training Programmes/ Kisan Melas: 43,631. The above details include completed as well as ongoing works. Actual expenditure from MGNREGS funds was Rs. 65,666 crore. States/UTs have also been directed to utilized their own resources.

The progress of the Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain – 2022 campaign since 29.3.2022 as on 02.02.2023 are as follows:-

      Water Conservation & Rainwater Harvesting Structures: 11,98,823; (ii) Renovation of Traditional Water Bodies: 2,61,818; (iii) Reuse and Recharge Structures: 8,60,716; (iv) Watershed Development: 15,92,245; (v) Intensive Afforestation: 78,38,02,558; (vi) Total Jal Shakti Kendra established till date 607; (viii) Training Programmes/ Kisan Melas: 55,271; (viii) Scientific water conservation plan prepared 264. The above details include completed as well as ongoing works. Actual expenditure from MGNREGS funds was Rs. 22,723 crore.

(c) & (d) No specific study is available. However, various methods commonly used for rain water harvesting including house-hold level have been described in the “Manual on Artificial Recharge of Ground Water” available in the public domain at the following URL: http://cgwb.gov.in/documents/Manual-Artificial-Recharge.pdf.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Shri Bishweswar Tudu in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.

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AS

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