Parliament Question: Projects to improve groundwater levels in the country

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2645 ANSWERED ON 16.03.2026 PROJECTS TO IMPROVE GROUNDWATER LEVELS IN THE COUNTRY 2645. # SHRI RAJENDRA GEHLOT: Will the Minister of Jal Shakti be pleased to state: (a) whether any project is being implemented to improve groundwater level, if so, the details thereof; (b) whether there is any plan to increase water storage capacity by deepening water bodies such as lakes, dams and reservoirs and, if so, the details thereof; and (c) whether Government is upgrading technology for cleaning rivers and water bodies and, if so, the details thereof and district-wise details of the reservoirs, dams and lakes selected for this purpose particularly in the State of Rajasthan? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (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 to complement the efforts of the states. 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: i. Efforts of the Government for augmenting the water/groundwater resources of the country are mainly channeled through the flagship campaign of Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA), an annual mission mode programme for taking up water harvesting and artificial recharge activities. As per the available information, under JSA, more than 2 cr water conservation and artificial recharge works have been taken up through convergence in the country so far, which have played a key role in enhancing the sustainability of ground water resources. ii. To further strengthen the momentum of JSA, Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB) initiative has been launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister in 2024 with a vision to make rain water harvesting a mass movement in the country. By promoting community ownership and responsibility, the initiative seeks to develop cost-effective, local solutions tailored to specific water challenges across different regions. Thus far, more than 45 lakh rain water harvesting and artificial recharge structures have been constructed across the country under this initiative. 1iii. The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) is implementing ‘Ground Water Management & Regulation Scheme’(GWM&R), of which regular monitoring of ground water resources throughout the country and judicious ground water regulation are important pillars. Further, after the successful completion of NAQUIM 1.0 (National Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme), which mapped country's aquifers and provided a macro-level understanding of our nation's groundwater resources, CGWB has embarked upon NAQUIM 2.0 focusing on water stressed and quality affected pockets. iv. M/o Jal Shakti has successfully demonstrated the efficacy of community led participatory ground water management through Atal Bhujal Yojana which was implemented in 80 water stressed districts in 7 States, including Rajasthan. Construction of various rain water harvesting and recharge structures like check dams, ponds, shafts etc. as well as promotion of micro irrigation was taken up through convergence and by use of incentive funds under the scheme. v. In addition to the above, a number of States have done notable work in the field of water conservation/harvesting. Some of them can be mentioned as ‘Mukhyamantri Jal Swavlamban Abhiyan’ in Rajasthan, ‘JalyuktShibar’ in Maharashtra, ‘SujalamSufalam Abhiyan’ in Gujarat, ‘Mission Kakatiya’ in Telangana, 'Neeru Chettu’ in Andhra Pradesh, 'Jal Jeevan Hariyali' in Bihar, ‘Jal Hi Jeevan’ in Haryana, 'Kudimaramath' scheme in Tamil Nadu etc. Further, the impact of such measures is also duly reflected in the steadily improving ground water resource scenario of the country. The analysis of groundwater resource assessments for 2017 and 2025 indicates a positive trend in recharge attributable to Water Conservation Structures (WCS) including tanks and ponds etc. During this period, recharge from tanks, ponds and WCS have increased from 13.98 Billion Cubic Meters (BCM) to 26.91 BCM, vindicating the consistent efforts of the government in boosting the ground water potential of the country through sustained conservation and recharge measures. (b) Regarding deepening/rejuvenating the water bodies for increasing the storage capacity: i. 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. As an outcome nearly 69,000 Amrit Sarovars have been constructed/ rejuvenated, augmenting storage and increasing ground water recharge. ii. Centrally sponsored scheme “Repair, Renovation & Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies (WBs)” is a component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) – Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP) being implemented by Ministry of Jal Shakti under which works like cleaning of traditional water bodies is taken up. 2iii. Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) Phase II and III scheme (2021-2031) is being implemented wherein provision has been made for need based de-siltation of the reservoirs. iv. Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs is currently implementing Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0 Scheme under which Rejuvenation of water bodies and wells in urban areas is one of the main components. v. Under MGNREGS, works relating to water conservation and water harvesting, including large scale desiltation projects for traditional water bodies, rejuvenation of river stretches etc. have been carried out by various state governments. (c) The Ministry is constantly exploring and harnessing new technologies for cleaning of rivers and water bodies. Under the Namami Gange programme of the Ministry, various innovative and new technologies have been adopted based on regulatory requirements and site conditions. The following are some of the important technologies being employed:  Multi-storey Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs)  Nature-based sewage treatment using Constructed Wetlands  Packaged Sewage Treatment Plant – 'Johkasou'  Advance Oxidation Process (AOP)  Electrocoagulation  Mandatory Tertiary Treatment by filtration and disinfection to achieve the stringent norms for river revival. With regard to cleaning of water bodies, the district-wise details of number of traditional water bodies renovated in Rajasthan from 22nd March, 2025 to 12th March, 2026 is provided in Annexure. Further, in case of dams, as informed by the Govt. of Rajasthan, desiltation activities has been taken up at Bisalpur dam located in Tonk District, Som Kamla Amba Dam (Dungarpur district) and Gudha Dam (Bundi District) on revenue generation mode under DRIP Phase II & III. *** 3ANNEXURE ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (c) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2645 TO BE ANSWERED IN RAJYA SABHA ON 16.03.2026 REGARDING “PROJECTS TO IMPROVE GROUNDWATER LEVELS IN THE COUNTRY”. Renovation of Traditional Water Bodies in Rajasthan, District-wise from 22nd March, 2025 to 12th March, 2026 S.No. District Name Renovation of Traditional Water Bodies* 1 AJMER 403 2 ALWAR 330 3 ANUPGARH 0 4 BALTORA 30 5 BANSWARA 231 6 BARAN 378 7 BARMER 117 8 BEAWAR 83 9 BHARATPUR 224 10 BHILWARA 1091 11 BIKANER 423 12 BUNDI 111 13 CHITTORGARH 96 14 CHURU 80 15 DAUSA 108 16 DEEG 32 17 DHOLPUR 153 18 DIDWANA-KUCHAMAN 1 19 DUDU 0 20 DUNGARPUR 502 21 GANGANAGAR 156 22 GANGAPUR CITY 0 23 HANUMANGARH 280 24 JAIPUR 405 25 JAIPUR (Gramin) 0 26 JAISALMER 263 27 JALORE 84 28 JHALAWAR 399 29 JHUNJHUNU 122 30 JODHPUR 625 31 JODHPUR (Gramin) 0 32 KARAULI 264 33 KEKRI 0 34 KHAIRTAL-TIJARA 391 35 KOTA 177 36 KOTPUTLI-BEHROR 18 37 NAGAUR 226 38 NEEM KA THANA 0 39 PALI 277 40 PHALODI 147 41 PRATAPGARH 303 42 RAJSAMAND 1020 43 SALUMBAR 2 44 SANCHORE 0 45 SAWAI MADHOPUR 118 46 SHAHPURA 0 47 SIKAR 48 48 SIROHI 117 49 TONK 167 50 UDAIPUR 183 Total 10185 *as per JSA: CTR portal ***** 4