Jal Shakti Honours Top Performers in Water Conservation

Launched on 6 September 2024 in Surat, Gujarat, the JSJB initiative reflects the Prime Minister’s vision of “Jan Shakti for Jal Shakti” and champions participatory water governance through a Whole-of-Government and Whole-of-Society approach. Based on the ‘3Cs’ mantra—Community, CSR, and Cost—it aims to promote sustainable water management and strengthen resilience against water scarcity.

Under the initiative, states are divided into five zones, with each district tasked to construct at least 10,000 artificial recharge and storage structures, while North-Eastern and Hilly districts have a reduced target of 3,000. Municipal corporations across India are also encouraged to build a minimum of 10,000 such structures, including rooftop rainwater harvesting systems, and the rejuvenation of ponds, lakes, and stepwells.

To reinforce urban conservation efforts, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs joined hands with the Ministry of Jal Shakti, motivating Urban Local Bodies to construct at least 2,000 recharge structures each.

This year, 100 awards will be conferred, recognising excellence across multiple categories: three top-performing states, 67 districts, six municipal corporations, one urban local body, two ministries, two industries, three NGOs, two philanthropists, and 14 nodal officers. The winners were selected based on verified data uploaded to the JSJB portal.

The Government of India is incentivising outstanding performance in building and maintaining groundwater recharge structures such as borewell recharge systems and rooftop harvesting units. Against a national target of 1 million structures, over 2.76 million have been completed within the stipulated timeframe — a remarkable 176 per cent achievement.

Top-performing districts will receive Rs 20 million each under Category 1, while those in Categories 2 and 3 will be awarded Rs 10 million and Rs 2.5 million, respectively. All recipients will also receive a citation signed by the Secretary, Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.

The JSJB initiative has successfully fostered replicable community models for groundwater recharge through collective participation and resource convergence, contributing significantly to India’s long-term water sustainability goals.