(a) whether the Government propose to review anachronistic rules prohibiting the public and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to harvest rain water and recharge ground water;
(a) if so, whether the Government propose to prohibit
establishment of water intensive industries in water scarce areas;
and
(b) if so, the details thereof ?
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WATER RESOURCES (SMT. BIJOYA CHAKRAVARTY)
(a) to (c) In order to regulate development of ground water in
the over-exploited areas, the Central Ground Water Authority
(CGWA), constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
has declared 11 areas as notified areas restricting fresh ground
water withdrawal. In the notified areas, no
person/organization/agency (Government or non-Government) can
undertake any scheme/project of ground water development and
management without prior permission of the Authority. In the
notified areas of Delhi, however permission of the CGWA is
necessary even for construction of recharge wells. This is being
done to avoid misuse of recharge structures for construction of
production wells for abstraction of ground water.