Rajnandgaon district in Chhattisgarh has launched Mission Jal Raksha ahead of the 2025 monsoon season under the Centre's Catch the Rain campaign. The initiative focuses on water conservation through rainwater harvesting, pond rejuvenation, and check dam construction. Supported by NABARD and the Jal Shakti Ministry, the mission targets groundwater recharge and drought-proofing in rain-shadow areas. Rajnandgaon, historically prone to water stress, aims to create decentralised community water structures before the monsoon peaks.

Mission Jal Raksha in Rajnandgaon exemplifies how India's water security agenda is being operationalised at the district level. The broader national framework is the Catch the Rain campaign, launched by the Ministry of Jal Shakti in 2021 under the theme 'Catch the Rain, Where it Falls, When it Falls.' The campaign runs each year ahead of the monsoon (March–November window), urging states and local bodies to build and repair water harvesting structures before precipitation begins.

Rajnandgaon's significance lies in its agro-ecological context — it is part of Chhattisgarh's Mahanadi basin, where erratic rainfall distribution has caused recurring agricultural distress. By constructing check dams, recharging borewells, desilting tanks, and activating rooftop rainwater harvesting, the district converts monsoon excess into a year-round resource. NABARD's role here is critical: it finances Watershed Development Fund (WDF) projects and Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) allocations that enable states to build such decentralised infrastructure.

For UPSC aspirants, this story connects static concepts — watershed management, aquifer recharge, the National Water Policy 2012, and Jal Jeevan Mission — to a live policy implementation. For NABARD Grade A candidates, it illustrates how refinancing flows through RIDF to district-level water infrastructure, linking NABARD's mandate to ground-level outcomes. The pre-monsoon timing (May–June activation) is itself a planning best practice this topic tests.