Parliament Question: Groundwater Recharge

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *72 ANSWERED ON 24.07.2025 GROUNDWATER RECHARGE *72. SHRI MAGUNTA SREENIVASULU REDDY Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has undertaken any initiatives/measures or implemented any schemes to recharge/improve groundwater levels across the country during the last five years, if so, the details thereof; (b) the total funds allocated and utilised in this regard during the last five years, State-wise especially in the State of Andhra Pradesh; (c) whether the Government has considered utilising new-age technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Satellite mapping and other such technologies for mapping and measuring groundwater levels in the country, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and (d) the steps taken/proposed to be taken by the Government to increase awareness regarding the need to enhance groundwater levels across the country? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF JAL SHAKTI (SHRI C R PAATIL) (a) to (d) : A statement is laid on the Table of the House. 1STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (d) OF STARRED QUESTION NO. *72 TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.07.2025 IN LOK SABHA REGARDING “GROUNDWATER RECHARGE” (a) Water being a State subject, the issues related to development, regulation and management of ground water is primarily the responsibility of the state governments. The Central Government provides technical support and financial assistance through its institutions and various centrally sponsored schemes. In this regard, the Ministry of Jal Shakti(MoJS) is implementing several projects and schemes to continuously monitor and improve the ground water levels in the country whose brief outline is given below:  MoJS is implementing Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) in the country since 2019 which is a mission mode and time bound programme for harvesting the rainfall and taking up water conservation activities like check dams, ponds, recharge shafts/pits etc by actively converging the resources from several platforms. Currently, JSA 2025 is underway in the country, with a special focus on Over-exploited and Critical districts. Further, Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB) initiative was launched under JSA during 2024, for taking up the construction of cost effective and locally suited artificial recharge structures across the country on a large scale through a convergent and participatory approach.  MoJS is also implementing Atal Bhujal Yojana in selected 80 water-stressed districts in identified 7 states to ensure sustainable management of groundwater resources with community participation. Several supply and demand side interventions have been taken up under the scheme to boost ground water recharge and to reduce water demand as well.  The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) regulates and monitors ground water levels and quality and assess ground water resources etc throughout the country. Further, under National Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme (NAQUIM) aquifer mapping for the entire mappable area of the country has been completed and district-wise aquifer management plans have been prepared and disseminated to the concerned administrations. Further, under NAQUIM 2.0, detailed micro level studies focusing on priority areas like water stressed zones, urban agglomerations, coastal regions have been done.  Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater- 2020 has also 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. The Master Plan envisages construction of about 1.42 2crore Rain water harvesting and artificial recharge structures in the country to harness 185 Billion Cubic Meters (BCM) of water.  Mission Amrit Sarovar was launched by the Government of India, which aimed at developing and rejuvenating at least 75 water bodies in each district of the country for the purpose of increasing water storage and boosting ground water recharge.  Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare (DA & FW) is implementing Per Drop More Crop Scheme since 2015-16, which focuses on enhancing water use efficiency at farm level through Micro Irrigation and thus improving the ground water situation through demand reduction.  In addition to the above, several State Governments have been implementing their own schemes targeting sustainable water resource improvement and management. (b) Under Jal Shakti Abhiyan, which is an umbrella campaign for converging all ground water improvement activities, an amount of Rs. 1.18 lakh crores has been spent towards water conservation, artificial recharge and rainwater harvesting activities/works from April 2021 to July 2025 by convergence through MGNREGA. Similarly, for the state of Andhra Pradesh, an amount of Around Rs. 9,814 crores has been spent during the same period. State-wise expenditure details are provided in Annexure-I. (c) To leverage advanced global practices, this Ministry has adopted cutting-edge technology for more accurate groundwater mapping, monitoring, and assessment. CGWB employs GIS tools, remote sensing, and satellite data to develop scientific, region-specific management and recharge plans, including NAQUIM studies and the Master Plan for Artificial Recharge. Further, this Ministry has taken up the process of installing Digital Water Level Recorders (DWLRs) with telemetry systems throughout the country under its various schemes and projects like Ground Water Management & Regulation (GWM &R) Scheme, Atal Bhujal Yojana, National Hydrology Project(NHP) etc. These instruments transmit high frequency water level data directly from the field to a central server which will facilitate near-real-time access to this data, helping in more robust policy formulation. Moreover, Heli-borne geophysical surveys adopting Transient Electromagnetic Methods have been carried out by CGWB in collaboration with CSIR-NGRI for high resolution mapping of aquifers in the arid north western areas of the country. Several potential sites for ground water exploration as well as conducting artificial recharge have been identified in the survey. 3(d) The government is continuously striving to enhance people’s awareness about ground water issues of the country and secure active community participation for sustainable management of ground water resources. Some of the important measures taken in this regard are provided below:  Sensitizing the communities on the need to preserve water and securing their active participation in water conservation works is at the heart of Jal Shakti Abhiyan. Through campaigns, workshops, and local initiatives, it educates citizens on rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, and efficient water use. Moreover, Jal Shakti Kendras (JSKs) have been set up in every district of the country which act as knowledge centers disseminating information and advising people on various water related issues.  JSJB campaign was launched under JSA with an objective to take ground water management to grassroots level. By converging efforts and funds from both government and community, the initiative strives to promote community ownership and responsibility, for developing cost- effective, local solutions tailored to specific water challenges across different regions.  Large scale sustained information, education, communication (IEC) and awareness activities have been taken up under Atal Bhujal Yojana at Gram Panchayat level on local ground water issues. Further, regular Gram Panchayat level training programmes have enabled the local villagers to prepare Water Budgets and Water Security Plans for their Panchayats.  Central Ground Water Board organizes various Public Interaction Programs (PIPs) on local ground water issues, wherein the local public is made aware of rainwater harvesting techniques, construction and conservation of water harvesting structures etc. *** 4ANNEXURE-I ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (b) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *72 TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.07.2025 REGARDING “GROUNDWATER RECHARGE” State-wise Expenditure incurred under Jal Shakti Abhiyan in convergence with MGNREGA from - 2021—25 (in Lakhs) S.No State Water Renovation Reuse Watershe Intensive Grand . Conservation of and d Afforesta Total and Traditional Recharge Developm tion Rainwater Water Structure ent Harvesting Bodies s 1 ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR 147 99 1 124 7 378 2 ANDHRA PRADESH 273580 469571 364 186559 51336 981411 3 ARUNACHAL PRADESH 13892 886 2659 6098 19614 43143 4 ASSAM 60377 13567 119 122439 15418 211914 5 BIHAR 211196 43859 8385 146723 27544 437708 6 CHHATTISGARH 251101 156291 7354 63766 29172 507683 7 DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI 0 0 0 0 0 0 AND DAMAN AND DIU 8 GOA 46 121 30 106 16 319 9 GUJARAT 43947 57250 1307 51837 19447 173791 10 HARYANA 11012 14019 207 20853 2282 48374 11 HIMACHAL PRADESH 17949 3876 784 52710 7273 82590 12 JAMMU AND KASHMIR 36413 8197 14619 69237 6927 135395 13 JHARKHAND 80574 2160 920 83972 27832 195460 14 KARNATAKA 259995 92652 41581 254500 266082 914807 15 KERALA 118159 41839 30318 425992 55815 672123 16 LADAKH 2953 130 1031 2953 155 7222 17 LAKSHADWEEP 0 2 0 0 2 4 18 MADHYA PRADESH 422781 50997 20527 256107 57985 808395 19 MAHARASHTRA 30434 18194 3225 24700 84844 161397 20 MANIPUR 35907 12771 286 9887 16417 75271 21 MEGHALAYA 22590 2642 619 23956 14311 64119 22 MIZORAM 33003 1815 1169 14320 4420 54729 23 NAGALAND 9807 3251 303 7621 31579 52563 24 ODISHA 205492 116123 9617 234166 147239 712636 25 PUDUCHERRY 106 2905 0 15 2 3029 26 PUNJAB 8502 41796 719 33749 33840 118601 27 RAJASTHAN 701945 245079 3779 194947 117182 1262928 28 SIKKIM 2546 91 195 6757 4007 13595 29 TAMIL NADU 956291 161530 29904 404985 64375 1617082 30 TELANGANA 31559 92440 245 51433 61164 236849 31 TRIPURA 46563 4197 1332 53198 30091 135381 32 UTTAR PRADESH 229263 169432 4750 811800 54980 1270227 33 UTTARAKHAND 23234 7445 1716 58003 8496 98896 34 WEST BENGAL 199513 137368 11191 128166 233781 710019 Total (In Lakhs) 4340877 1972595 199256 3801679 1493635 11808039 ***** 5