REFERENCE NOTE No.60/RN/Ref./Nov/2017 For the use of Members of Parliament NOT FOR PUBLICATION 1 GROUND WATER SCENARIO IN THE COUNTRY Prepared by Dr. Jayadev Sahu, Additional Director (23035025) and Shri Sai Ram C.V., Junior Library Assistant of Lok Sabha Secretariat under the supervision of Smt. Kalpana Sharma, Joint Secretary and Smt. Anita Khanna, Director. reference materia is for personal use of the Members in the discharge of their Parliamentary duties, and is not for eference materia is for personal use of the Members in the discharge of their The Reference Note is for personal use of the Members in the discharge of their Parliamentary duties, and is not for publication. This Service is not to be quoted as the source of information as it is based on the sources indicated at the end/in the text. MEMBERS' REFERENCE SERVICE LARRDIS LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT, NEW DELHI
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REFERENCE NOTE
No.60/RN/Ref./Nov/2017
For the use of Members of Parliament NOT FOR PUBLICATION1
GROUND WATER SCENARIO
IN THE COUNTRY
Prepared by Dr. Jayadev Sahu, Additional Director (23035025) and Shri Sai Ram C.V., Junior Library
Assistant of Lok Sabha Secretariat under the supervision of Smt. Kalpana Sharma, Joint Secretary and
Smt. Anita Khanna, Director. reference materia is for personal use of the Members in the discharge of
their Parliamentary duties, and is not for eference materia is for personal use of the Members in the
discharge of their
The Reference Note is for personal use of the Members in the discharge of their Parliamentary duties, and is not for publication. This Service is not to be quoted as the source of information as it is based on the sources indicated at the end/in the text.
MEMBERS' REFERENCE SERVICE
LARRDIS
LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT, NEW DELHI
GROUND WATER SCENARIO IN THE COUNTRY
Introduction
Water is essential for life, living and livelihood. Sustainable development
and efficient management of water is an increasingly complex challenge in
India. Increasing population, growing urbanization and rapid industrialization
combined with the need for raising agricultural production is generating
competing demands for water. Ground water is an annually replenishable
resource but its availability is non-uniform in space and time.1
India has extensive ground water resources and it is the largest user of
ground water globally.2 Technically, dynamic ground water refers to the
quantity of ground water available in the zone of water level fluctuation, which
is replenished annually. Ground water has steadily emerged as the backbone of
India‟s agriculture and drinking water security. Contribution of ground water is
nearly 62 percent in irrigation, 85 percent in rural water supply and 45 percent
in urban water supply.3 It contributes to the base flow in rivers and wetlands and
supports terrestrial vegetation. In arid and semi arid regions, it is often the sole
water supply source. Therefore, ground water plays a crucial role in the
socioeconomic development of the country.
However, India‟s ground water resources are under threat. Intensive and
unregulated pumping has caused a rapid and widespread decline in ground
water levels. Between 1950 and 2010, the number of tube wells drilled has
increased from 1 million to nearly 30 million, representing an unprecedented
scale of development. This explosive ground water use – the so‐ called „silent
revolution‟ – has led to extensive overdraft in several rural areas, including in
the “bread basket” States of the North and the Northeast, as well as in major
urban settings. Falling water tables have, in turn, led to ground water yield
1 Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India, CGWB, June 2017,p.1.
2 National Groundwater Management Improvement Program, Government of India, 2016,p.15.
3 Dynamic Ground, op.cit.,p.1.
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reductions, pump failure in rural water-supply wells, unreliable urban water
supply, salinization, land subsidence and drying of wetlands, all of which have
direct consequences for the economies, livelihoods and societies that are
dependent on ground water resources.4
Ground Water Resources of India
As per the latest assessment (2013), Annual Replenishable Ground Water
Resource for the entire country has been assessed as 447 billion cubic meter
(bcm). Keeping 36 bcm for natural discharge, the Net Annual Ground Water
Availability for the entire country is 411 bcm.
Monsoon rainfall is the major source of ground water recharge. About 58
percent of the annual replenishable resource i.e. 260 bcm is contributed by
recharge from monsoon rainfall. The overall contribution of rainfall (both
monsoon & non monsoon) to country‟s Annual Replenishable Ground Water
Resources is 67 percent and the share of other sources viz. canal seepage, return
flow from irrigation, recharge from tanks, ponds and water conservation
structures taken together is 33 percent. State-wise ground water resources,
availability, utilization and stage of ground water development of India are
given in Annexure I.
Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India5
Total Annual Replenishable Ground Water Resources 447 bcm
Net Annual Ground Water Availability 411 bcm
Annual Ground Water Draft (Utilization) 253 bcm
Stage of Ground Water Development 62%
Categorization of Assessment Units
(Blocks/ Mandals/ Firka/Taluks)
No. of Assessed Units 6584
Safe 4520 (69%)
Semi Critical 681 (10%)
Critical 253 (4%)
Over-Exploited 1034 (16%)
Saline 96 (1%)
4 National Groundwater, op.cit.,p.15.
5 Dynamic Ground, op.cit.
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Ground Water Utilization
The Annual Ground Water Draft (Utilization) of the entire country for the
reference year 2013 has been estimated as 253 bcm. Agriculture sector
remained the predominant consumer of ground water resources. About 90
percent of total annual ground water draft i.e. 228 bcm is for irrigation use.
Only 25 bcm is for Domestic and Industrial use which is about 10 percent of the
total draft.
Ground Water Development
The overall stage of ground water development in the country is 62
percent6. The stage of ground water development is very high in the States of
Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan, where it is more than 100 percent, which
implies that in these States the annual ground water consumption is more than
annual ground water recharge. In the States of Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and
UTs of Daman & Diu and Puducherry, the stage of ground water development
is 70 percent and above. In rest of the States / UTs the stage of ground water
development is below 70 percent.
Ground Water Pollution and Depletion
Deteriorating ground water quality is also a significant and growing
problem. Pollution from poor sanitation, mining, industry and agro‐ chemicals
(pesticides and fertilizers) together with naturally occurring contaminants
(arsenic, fluoride and iron) reduce „effective‟ groundwater supply further. In
areas with high ground water tables, poor drainage is contributing to
waterlogging, salinization and alkalinity problems, especially in the States of
Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana.7 State-wise details of
contamination of ground water are given in Annexure-II.
6 The stage of ground water development is a ratio of Annual Ground Water Draft and Net Annual
Ground Water Availability in percentage.
7 National Ground, op.cit., p.15.
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The status of ground water exploitation in the country is being regularly
assessed by Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) at the block level
(sub‐ District level also known as taluka or mandal in some States). The details
are given in Annexure-III.
Policy initiatives taken by the Government of India for ground water
management
The National Water Policy (2012) formulated by Ministry of Water
Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation (MoWR, RD &
GR), inter-alia, advocates conservation, promotion and protection of
water and highlights the need for augmenting the availability of water
through rain water harvesting, direct use of rainfall and other
management measures.
Circulation of a Model Bill, by the Ministry of Water Resources, RD &
GW, to all the States/UTs to enable them to enact suitable ground water
legislation for its regulation and development which includes provision of
rain water harvesting.
Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has prepared a conceptual
document entitled “Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Ground Water
in India” during 2013, involving ground water scientists/experts. The
Master Plan envisages construction of 1.11 crore rain water harvesting
and artificial recharge structures in the Country at an estimated cost of
Rs.79,178 crores to harness 85 BCM (Billion Cubic Metre) of water. The
augmented ground water resources will enhance the availability of water
for drinking, domestic, industrial and irrigation purpose. The Master Plan
has been circulated to all State Governments for implementation.
The Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation has suggested all States to
adopt water conservation measures like roof top rainwater harvesting,
erecting sustainability structures for water conservation, etc. For creating
such sustainability structures, 10 percent of National Rural Drinking
Water Programme (NRDWP) funds are provided to the States.
Department of Land Resources is currently implementing 8214 watershed
development projects in 28 States covering an area of about 39.07 million
ha. under the Watershed Development Component (WDC) of the Pradhan
Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) principally for development
of rainfed portions of net cultivated area and culturable wastelands. The
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major activities taken up under the WDC-PMKSY, inter-alia, include
ridge area treatment, drainage line afforestation, soil and moisture
conservation, rain water harvesting, horticulture, and pasture
development, etc.
The Ministry of Rural Development in consultation and agreement with
the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga
Rejuvenation and the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers‟ Welfare has
issued „Mission Water Conservation Guidelines‟ to be implemented by
all the States for scientific planning and execution of water management
works with the use of latest technology. The thrust is on Planning and
Monitoring Framework for Natural Resource Management (NRM)
related works under MGNREGA in convergence with Pradhan Mantri