World Water Day is celebrated on March 22 since 1993 to focus attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for freshwater resources' sustainable management. This Day is an opportunity to learn and experience more about water-related issues and take action to make a difference. Water is an essential building block of life. It is more than just necessary to quench thirst or protect health; water is vital for creating jobs and supporting economic, social, and human development.
The theme of World Water Day 2021 is – valuing water. It is about what water means to people, it's actual value, and how we can better protect this vital resource. The value of water is much more than its price – water has enormous and sophisticated value for households, food, culture, health, education, economics and, therefore, the integrity of our natural environment. If we overlook any of those values, we risk mismanaging this finite, irreplaceable resource.
The main focus of this World Water Day is to "support the achievement of sustainable development goal (SDG) 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030." SDG 6 is to ensure water and sanitation for all. Without a comprehensive understanding of water's actual, multidimensional value, we will be unable to safeguard this critical resource for everyone's benefit.
On World Water Day 2021, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain' campaign. The campaign will be undertaken across the country, in both rural and urban areas, with the theme "catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls". It will be implemented from 22nd March 2021 to 30th November 2021, that is, during pre-monsoon and monsoon period. It is launched as a Jan Andolan to take water conservation at the grass-root level through people's participation. It is intended to nudge all stakeholders to create rainwater harvesting structures suitable for the climatic conditions and subsoil strata to ensure proper rainwater storage.