India Builds 39.6 Lakh Rain Harvesting Projects to Combat Groundwater Crisis

The initiative seeks to improve groundwater recharge through measures such as rainwater harvesting, aquifer recharge, borewell recharge, and recharge shafts.

The 'Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater' promotes terrain-specific recharge techniques based on water availability and aquifer storage capacity. The Plan also provides a broad outline for the construction of around 1.42 crore rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge structures in the country to channel 185 BCM (billion cubic metres) groundwater recharge.

Groundwater is central to India's water security, sustaining agriculture, drinking water supply, ecosystems, and agricultural activity, yet increasing pressures from overextraction, quality degradation, and climate variability have made sustainable groundwater management imperative.

In response, India has embraced a comprehensive and multi-layered approach combining policy reform, scientific assessment, infrastructure creation, and community participation, led by the Ministry of Jal Shakti. The country has a network of 43,228 groundwater level monitoring stations, 712 Jal Shakti Kendras, and 53,264 Atal Jal Water Quality Monitoring Stations which play a crucial role in implementing policy measures.

The Atal Bhujal Yojana (Atal Jal) also focuses on promoting community-led sustainable groundwater management in water-stressed areas of seven states -- Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh -- which has brought over 6.68 lakh hectares under efficient use as on January this year, the statement said.

Launched on December 25, 2019, the scheme supports water source sustainability for the Jal Jeevan Mission. Under the Project Implementation Plan of five years, the total financial outlay of Rs 6,000 crore is distributed between Component A (Rs 1,400 crore) for institutional strengthening and Component B (Rs 4,600 crore) for incentive-based outcomes, reflecting a strong results-oriented design.

Besides, Mission Amrit Sarovar, launched in April 2022, supports the creation of Amrit Sarovars (ponds) across all districts in the country. Each pond is planned to have a minimum area of one acre (0.4 hectare) and a water storage capacity of about 10,000 cubic metres. Over 68,000 ponds have been completed under the scheme so far, the statement said.

Key initiatives such as the Model Bill on Groundwater, Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain, Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari, the Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater 2020, Atal Bhujal Yojana, and Mission Amrit Sarovar jointly reinforce recharge, monitoring, regulation, and demand side management.

The Model Bill has been shared with all States and Union Territories, and so far, 21 of them have adopted it, including Bihar, Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh.

The Centre actively engages with state governments to promote prudent regulation and sustainable management of groundwater resources. This engagement is undertaken through regular correspondence, seminars, conferences of State Water Ministers and Chief Secretaries, and deliberations under the National Interdepartmental Steering Committee (NISC) on Groundwater, chaired by the Secretary, Department of Water Resources.

The growing groundwater crisis has strengthened the government's commitment to effective management, reaffirmed by India's COP 21 commitment to climate resilience and long-term growth. Effective groundwater management is vital for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, the official statement added.

- IANS