Question : Ground Water Management

(a) whether the Government is aware that water shortage is one of the biggest problems that the country faces today and poor management of available resources is a big reason for the same and if so, the facts thereof;

(b) whether the ground water meets about 60% of irrigation, 85% of rural drinking water and 50% of urban drinking water requirement in the country and if so, the facts thereof;

(c) whether the rivers, lakes, ground water and other sources of water in the country are being over-exploited and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether there is urgent need for participatory ground water management in the country and if so, the initiatives taken by the Government to encourage participatory ground water management; and

(e) the steps taken by the Government to find ways to preserve, protect and augment the available water resources?

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT AND GANGA REJUVENATION & PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

(SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

(a) to (e) It has been observed that there is a progressive reduction in per capita availability of water in the Country. This reduction can be attributed to increase in population, rapid urbanization & industrialization and other related factors. As per year 2001 census, the average annual per capita availability of water in the country was 1816 m3/year, which has reduced to 1545 m3/year as per 2011 census. Further, projections for the year 2025 and 2050 are 1340 m3/year & 1140 m3/year respectively.


As per the report of the ‘Task Force on Irrigation, 2009’ of the erstwhile Planning Commission, ground water meets nearly 55% of irrigation requirements of the country besides meeting more than 85% of water requirement for domestic use in rural areas and over 50% for Urban areas.

Ground Water Resource Assessment of the Country is being periodically carried out jointly by Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and State Governments. During the assessment year 2013, out of 6584 assessment units in the country, 1034 assessment units are categorized as “Over-Exploited”.

As per Reassessment of Water Availability Studies carried out in 1993, the average annual water availability in the country has been assessed as 1869 BCM (Billion Cubic Meter). It is estimated that owing to topographic, hydrological and other constraints, the utilizable water is 1123 BCM which comprises of 690 BCM of surface water and 433 BCM of replenishable ground water resources.

Water being a State subject, steps for augmentation, conservation and efficient management to ensure sustainability of water resources are primarily undertaken by the respective State Governments. Participatory ground water management is one of the viable strategies for sustainable management of ground water. In order to encourage participatory ground water management, Government has proposed Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY) aimed at sustainable ground water management with community participation in selected over-exploited and ground water stressed areas in seven States (Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh). ABHY is designed as a Central Sector Scheme with a total outlay of Rs. 6,000 Crore and is proposed to be implemented with World Bank assistance.

Other, steps taken by the Central Government for conservation of ground water are available at the following URL http://mowr.gov.in/sites/default/files/MeasuresForGW-Depletion_1.pdf.

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