Parliament Question: Impact of Groundwater Extraction

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 908 ANSWERED ON 23.07.2026 IMPACT OF GROUNDWATER EXTRACTION

908. Smt. PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA:

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has taken any action to address the unsustainable extraction of groundwater in the country and if so, the details thereof;

(b) the details of over-exploited, critical and semi-critical groundwater blocks, State-wise;

(c) whether the impact of excessive groundwater extraction has been assessed and if so, the details thereof including the details of land subsidence, State-wise;

(d) whether the Government has taken any initiatives to reduce dependence on groundwater extraction, especially in agriculture and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the action taken to accelerate groundwater recharge, especially through restoration and rejuvenation of natural ecosystems such as wetlands? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY)

(a) & (b) Dynamic Ground Water Resources of the country are assessed jointly by the Central Ground Water Board and the concerned State Governments/Union Territory. As per the National Compilation of Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India, 2025, the total Annual Ground Water Recharge has been assessed as 448.52 Billion Cubic Metres (BCM), the Annual Extractable Ground Water Resource as 407.75 BCM and the total Annual Ground Water Extraction as 247.22 BCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction, which represents the ratio of annual groundwater extraction to annual extractable groundwater resource, has been assessed as 60.63 per cent. Agriculture use accounts for about 87 per cent of the total annual groundwater extraction.

Out of 6,762 assessment units in the country, which are generally Blocks/Taluks/Mandals/Tehsils, 730 assessment units have been categorised as Over-exploited, 201 as Critical, 758 as Semi-critical, 4,946 as Safe and 127 as Saline. The State/UT-wise details of assessment units categorized as Over-exploited, Critical and Semi-critical are given at Annexure.

Comparison of the assessments for 2017 and 2025 indicates an overall improvement in the groundwater-resource scenario. The total Annual Ground Water Recharge increased from 431.86 BCM in 2017 to 448.52 BCM in 2025. During the same period, the Stage of Ground Water Extraction declined from

63.33 % to 60.63 %, the proportion of Safe assessment units increased from about 63 % to 73.14 % and the proportion of Over-exploited assessment units declined from about 17 % to 10.80 %.

1The Government has taken a multi-pronged approach to address unsustainable groundwater extraction. The Central Ground Water Authority regulates groundwater extraction by industries, mining and infrastructure projects in 19 States/UTs, in accordance with the Guidelines dated 24 September 2020, as amended from time to time. Remaining 17 States/UTs have their own groundwater extraction regulatory mechanism. The Central Ground Water Board undertakes periodic groundwater-resource assessment, groundwater-level monitoring, aquifer mapping and preparation of aquifer-management plans. Measures such as rainwater harvesting, artificial recharge, restoration of water bodies, micro-irrigation, crop diversification, water budgeting and community-led groundwater management are also promoted through programmes including Jal Shakti Abhiyan, Atal Bhujal Yojana, Per Drop More Crop and Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari. As water is a State subject, these efforts supplement the measures taken by the State Governments for sustainable groundwater management.

(c) Land subsidence is a localized phenomenon governed by geological, geotechnical, hydrogeological and anthropogenic factors. In susceptible aquifer systems, sustained groundwater withdrawal may lead to compaction of aquifer material and may contribute to land subsidence. Scientific institutions have reported localized subsidence in certain parts of the country. However, Ministry has not undertaken comprehensive State-wise assessment attributing land subsidence exclusively to excessive groundwater extraction.

(d) & (e) Water being a State subject, sustainable development and management of groundwater resources is primarily the responsibility of the State Governments. However, the Central Government supplements the efforts of the State Governments by providing technical guidance, policy support and financial assistance through various schemes and programmes. The major initiatives taken to regulate groundwater extraction, promote sustainable groundwater management, accelerate groundwater recharge and reduce dependence on groundwater, particularly in agriculture are as follows:

i. Under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY)–Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP), the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation is implementing the Surface Minor Irrigation (SMI) and Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies schemes. The RRR of Water Bodies component promotes restoration, renovation and rejuvenation of existing water bodies to improve their storage capacity, enhance groundwater recharge and restore their irrigation potential.

ii. The Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare is implementing the Per Drop More Crop

(PDMC) component to promote micro-irrigation and improve on-farm water-use efficiency, thereby reducing groundwater extraction and encouraging sustainable use of groundwater resources. iii. The Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare is implementing the Crop Diversification Programme (CDP), a sub-scheme of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PM-RKVY), to promote diversification from water-intensive paddy cultivation to less water-intensive alternative crops. The programme supports crop demonstrations, farm mechanisation, value addition, awareness generation and capacity building. The Government is expediting the river linking projects for 2transferring surplus water to the deficit areas which is expected to reduce dependence of ground water in agriculture.

iv. The Ministry of Jal Shakti has successfully demonstrated community-led participatory groundwater management through the Atal Bhujal Yojana, implemented in 8,203 water-stressed Gram Panchayats across seven States. The programme promotes demand-side interventions such as water budgeting, crop diversification and efficient water use.

v. The Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA), launched in 2019, is an annual mission-mode campaign focusing on water conservation, rainwater harvesting, renovation of traditional and other water bodies/tanks, reuse and recharge structures, watershed development and intensive afforestation. As per available information, more than 2 crore water conservation and artificial recharge works have been undertaken across the country through convergence under JSA.

vi. To further strengthen these efforts, the Hon'ble Prime Minister launched the Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB) initiative in 2024 to make rainwater harvesting a mass movement through community participation. The initiative promotes community-led construction of rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge and water storage structures tailored to local water needs. Thus far, more than 1.55 crore artificial groundwater recharge and water storage works have been created across the country under the initiative. Subsequently, the Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari–Catch the Rain (JSJB-CTR) campaign was launched on 1st June, 2026 to further promote rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharge across the country. Under VB-G RAM-G programme, 65 percent of total funds have been allocated for water related conservation works in Crtical and Overexploited distt.

vii. Mission Amrit Sarovar was launched by the Government of India to develop and rejuvenate at least 75 water bodies in every district of the country. As an outcome, nearly 69,000 Amrit Sarovars have been developed/rejuvenated across the country, contributing to enhanced water storage and groundwater recharge.

viii. Further, under the National Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme, the identified mappable area of about 25 lakh square kilometres has been covered and aquifer-management plans have been shared with the concerned State Governments. NAQUIM 2.0 has subsequently been taken up to generate higher-resolution aquifer information and management strategies in water-stressed, groundwater-quality-affected, coastal and other priority areas.

*** 3ANNEXURE ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) & (b) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 908 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 23.07.2026 REGARDING “IMPACT OF GROUNDWATER EXTRACTION”.

State/UT wise breakup of the number of assessment units categorized under Over-exploited, critical and Semi- critical (OCS), Safe and Saline categories as per GWRA 2025 Total S. No. of Semi- Over- State/Union Territories Safe Critical Saline No. Assessed Critical Exploited Units States Nos. % Nos. % Nos. % Nos. % Nos. % 1 Andhra Pradesh 679 601 88.5 24 3.5 3 0.4 12 1.8 39 5.74 2 Arunachal Pradesh 42 42 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 Assam 245 244 99.59 1 0.41 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 Bihar 535 471 88.04 49 9.16 12 2.24 3 0.56 0 0 5 Chhattisgarh 146 120 82.19 21 14.38 5 3.42 0 0 0 0 6 Goa 12 12 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 Gujarat 252 181 71.83 31 12.30 3 1.19 25 9.92 12 4.76 8 Haryana 143 31 21.68 15 10.49 6 4.20 91 63.64 0 0 9 Himachal Pradesh 26 26 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 Jharkhand 263 240 91.25 12 4.56 5 1.90 6 2.28 0 0 11 Karnataka 237 145 61.18 36 15.19 11 4.64 45 18.99 0 0 12 Kerala 152 123 80.92 27 17.76 2 1.32 0 0 0 0 13 Madhya Pradesh 317 221 69.72 64 20.19 6 1.89 26 8.20 0 0 14 Maharashtra 359 306 85.24 40 11.14 5 1.39 7 1.95 1 0.28 15 Manipur 9 9 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 Meghalaya 40 40 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 Mizoram 26 26 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 Nagaland 52 52 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 Odisha 314 298 94.90 10 3.18 0 0 0 0 6 1.91 20 Punjab 153 17 11.11 15 9.80 10 6.54 111 72.55 0 0 21 Rajasthan 302 36 11.92 27 8.94 23 7.62 213 70.53 3 0.99 22 Sikkim 38 38 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 23 Tamil Nadu 313 121 38.66 61 19.49 23 7.35 103 32.91 5 1.60 24 Telangana 620 473 76.29 105 16.94 19 3.06 23 3.71 0 0 25 Tripura 59 59 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 26 Uttar Pradesh 836 563 67.34 171 20.45 48 5.74 54 6.46 0 0 27 Uttarakhand 20 16 80 4 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 28 West Bengal 345 242 70.14 34 9.86 9 2.61 0 0 60 17.39 29 Andaman And Nicobar 9 9 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 Chandigarh 1 1 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dadra and Nagar Haveli 31 3 3 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 and Daman and Diu 32 Delhi 34 7 20.59 6 17.65 11 32.35 10 29.41 0 0 33 Jammu And Kashmir 149 149 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 34 Ladakh 18 17 94.44 1 5.56 0 0 0 0 0 0 35 Lakshadweep 5 4 80 1 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 36 Puducherry 8 3 37.50 3 37.50 0 0 1 12.50 1 12.50 Grand Total 6762 4946 73.14 758 11.21 201 2.97 730 10.80 127 1.88 Note- Blockwise-Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep Talukawise -Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry Mandalwise - Andhra Pradesh, Telangana Districtwise - Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu UT- Chandigarh Tehsilwise -Delhi ***** 4