(a) the details of water stressed areas in Gujarat, district-wise;
(b) whether the Government has taken any initiatives to boost recharge of ground water and harvesting techniques of rain water;
(c) if so, the details thereof;
(d) whether the Government has any proposal to build rainwater harvesting structures such as percolation tanks and recharge wells in rural areas; and
(e) if so, the details thereof?
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI
(SHRI BISHWESWAR TUDU)
(a) The dynamic groundwater resources of the country are being periodically assessed jointly by Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and State Governments. As per the 2020 assessment, out of the total 248 assessment units (Taluks) in Gujarat, twenty five (25) Taluks in eight (08) districts have been categorized as ‘Over-exploited’. Details in this regard is given at Annexure I.
(b) & (c) Though water is a State subject, Central Government has taken a number of important measures for conservation, management of ground water including effective implementation of rain water harvesting in the country, which can be seen at http://jalshakti-dowr.gov.in/sites/default/file/Steps%20taken%20by%20the%20Central% 20Govt%20for%20water_depletion_july2022.pdf. Some of the important initiatives in this regard are also given at Annexure II.
Government of India launched Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) in 2019 in 256 water stressed districts in the country including Gujarat which continued during 2021 also to improve water availability including ground water conditions in these areas. Further, the “Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain” (JSA:CTR) campaign for the years 2021 and 2022 have been launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister and Hon’ble President of India respectively. The JSA-2022 shall continue till 30 Nov 2022.
The Government is implementing Atal Bhujal Yojana (Atal Jal), a Rs. 6000 crore Central Sector Scheme with World Bank assistance, for sustainable management of ground water resources with community participation in select areas that include 80 districts, 224 administrative blocks and 8562 water stressed Gram Panchayats (GPs) of seven States, viz. Haryana, Gujarat (being implemented in 06 districts, 36 blocks and 2001 GPs), Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh from 01.04.2020 for a period of 5 years.
Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has taken up Heli-borne survey for expeditious generation of aquifer related information at a finer scale and its management in around 1.04 Lakh Sq KM, Arid/Semi-Arid areas of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana under National Aquifer Mapping programme that includes 31436 Sq. Km. of Gujarat.
Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) has prepared a Manual on Artificial Recharge to Groundwater which presents various techniques on artificial recharge and rainwater harvesting for both rural and urban areas which can be utilized by planners/stakeholders. The manuals and reports have been hosted in the CGWB website.
(d) & (e) This Ministry is implementing Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) across the country with the primary aim to effectively harvest the Monsoon rainfall in mission mode. The campaign focuses mainly on construction of various rainwater harvesting structures, renovation of traditional water bodies, reuse and recharge structures etc. The JSA is being implemented in convergence with various schemes like MGNREGA, PMKSY-Watershed development component, relevant State schemes etc.
Though Atal Bhujal Yojana is a scheme concentrating mostly on demand side management, construction of certain numbers of percolation tanks and recharge tube wells have been planned in certain districts. Further, as per information received from the State Government sizeable number of recharge structures and percolation tanks have been planned under PMKSY-Watershed component in certain water stressed areas of Gujarat.
The Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater- 2020 prepared by the CGWB on macro level envisages construction of about 13.4 Lakh rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge structures in Gujarat including 701 nos. of Percolation Tanks.
*****
ANNEXURE I
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (A) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 812 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 21.07.2022 REGARDING “RECHARGE OF GROUND WATER”.
District-wise list of over-exploited assessment units in Gujarat
Districts Over-Exploited Assessment Units (Taluks)
Banaskantha
DANTIWADA
DEESA
DEODAR
DHANERA
KANKREJ
LAKHANI
THARAD
Gandhinagar
DEHGAM
GANDHINAGAR
Junagadh
BHESAN
JUNAGADH CITY & JUNA
MANAVADAR
Kachchh
BHACHAU
BHUJ
MANDVI
Mahesana
BECHARAJI
JOTANA
KHERALU
MAHESANA
SATLASANA
VADNAGAR
Patan
CHANASMA
SARSVATI(PATAN)
Sabarkantha PRANTIJ
Vadodara PADRA
ANNEXURE II
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (b) & (c) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 812 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 21.07.2022 REGARDING “RECHARGE OF GROUND WATER”.
Important initiatives on management of groundwater resources
Government of India launched Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) in 2019, a time bound campaign with a mission mode approach intended to improve water availability including ground water conditions in the water stressed blocks of 256 districts in India. In this regard, teams of officers from Central Government along-with technical officers from Ministry of Jal Shakti were deputed to visit water stressed districts and to work in close collaboration with district level officials to undertake suitable interventions.
In addition, Ministry of Jal Shakti had taken up the “Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain” (JSA:CTR) with the theme “Catch the Rain - Where it Falls When it Falls” to cover all the blocks of all districts (rural as well as urban areas) across the country during 22nd March 2021 to 30th November 2021. The campaign was launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on 22 March 2021. Further, the Jal Shakti Abhiyan for the year 2022 has been launched by the Hon’ble President of India on 29 Mar 2022 which shall continue till 30 Nov 2022.
Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater- 2020 has been prepared by CGWB in consultation with States/UTs which is a macro level plan indicating various structures for the different terrain conditions of the country including. The Master Plan - 2020 envisages construction of about 1.42 crore rain water harvesting and artificial recharge structures in the country to harness 185 Billion Cubic Metre (BCM). The Master Plan envisages construction of about 13.4 Lakh Rain water harvesting and artificial recharge structures in Gujarat to harness 4459 Million Cubic Metre (MCM) of monsoon rainfall.
National Aquifer Mapping and Management program (NAQUIM) is being implemented by CGWB as part of Ground Water Management and Regulation (GWM & R) Scheme, a Central Sector scheme. NAQUIM envisages mapping of aquifers (water bearing formations), their characterization and development of Aquifer Management Plans to facilitate sustainable management of groundwater resources in the country. NAQUIM outputs are shared with States/UTs for suitable interventions.
Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has formulated guidelines for the States to adopt measures suitable to local conditions, such as Unified Building Bye Laws (UBBL) of Delhi, 2016, Model Building Bye Laws (MBBL), 2016 and Urban and Regional Development Plan Formulation and Implementation (URDPFI) Guidelines, 2014, wherein adequate focus has been given on requirement of rainwater harvesting and water conservation measures. As per MBBL, all buildings having a plot size of 100 sq.m. or, more shall mandatorily include the complete proposal of rainwater harvesting. 33 States/ UTs have adopted the features of these Bye Laws.
Further, a number of States have done notable work in the field of water conservation/harvesting such as ‘Mukhyamantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan’ in Rajasthan, ‘Jalyukt Shibar’ in Maharashtra, ‘Sujalam Sufalam Abhiyan’ in Gujarat, ‘Mission Kakatiya’ in Telangana, Neeru Chettu’ in Andhra Pradesh, Jal Jeevan Hariyali in Bihar, ‘Jal Hi Jeevan’ in Haryana, and Kudimaramath scheme in Tamil Nadu etc.
*****