India is mainly an agrarian economy. Agriculture is a water intensive sector. In India, this sector uses about 72% of the available fresh water. However, more than half of all the land under agricultural usage depends solely on rainwater and ground water. The advent of tube wells to access ground water many decades ago was a game changer, and brought unparalleled prosperity and growth for farmers.
However this increase in demand for irrigation has caused severe stress on ground water in many states such as southern & eastern Maharashtra & Rajasthan. Due to the rapid growth in groundwater use in India , the number of mechanised wells & tube wells rose from less than 1 million in 1960 to more than 19 million in 2000. It is estimated, that currently, there are about 40 million tube wells in India.
Unfortunately, the rate of extraction of groundwater is far higher than the recharge rate. If we continue at this rate, we are heading for a major water disaster in our lifetime. There is more fresh water stored underground than anywhere else on this planet. However only part of it is easily accessible. And if there are no plans promote artificial recharge, the ground water table falls.
In Maharashtra , there are cases of more than 10 tube wells per acre of agriculture land to meet the need of irrigation of crops. The Times of India recently ran a story on a farmer who has 48 tube wells on his farm land, depleting local ground table to 1000 ft. This is not just an isolated case. It is also estimated that Global Water Demand will increase increase by 55 % by 2050. Old farming methods in India on small land holdings require more water per kg of farm produce than global average. Over dependency on cash crops also puts a heavy demand on ground water.
The industrial sector is next biggest water user, at about 22% of the total usage. Less than 10% of fresh water is available for domestic use. Sadly, none of the users of water have realised the dire situation, which has led to a situation of “don’t care”. If this continues, we will soon face a situation where there will be riots because of water.
Despite multiple Govt regulations and GRs, nothing has been implemented. As citizens, we need to act now. Here is what we can do:
1. Better policies on Ground Water Governance by Central / State Govt. need to be formulated, and existing policies must be implemented.
2. All major aquifer systems must be properly assessed, and the resulting information and knowledge made freely available. This will enable the public to understand the reality of the situation
3. A Govt permit must be applied prior to digging bore wells. An undertaking must be provided that the applicant will recharge the ground water using RWH methods through the newly dug bore well
4. All the existing bore wells must be registered & similar undertaking to recharge must be made.
5. At village , ward office level , local govts should monitor depth of bore wells along with hardness details, and provide information freely.
6. Strict implementation of existing Govt. rules concerning recharge of ground water, and these must be made publicised appropriately.
7. Introducing need for explaining importance of clean surface & ground water through our education system to ensure that the next generation will treat water better than our generation.
Groundwater Management comprises of actions taken to control groundwater extraction and to prevent the degradation of water quality, typically with the objective of ensuring sustainable freshwater provision and preserving desired environmental and ecosystem conditions that depend on groundwater. Groundwater governance provides the enabling framework and guiding principles within which groundwater management operates.
Globally, groundwater has a huge social, economic and environmental importance. But, little attention has been paid to using this precious resource wisely, and managing and protecting it effectively. Groundwater governance is poor – or even largely absent - in most parts of the world.
It is time we must seriously focus on groundwater governance & management. Water demand by all the users is ever increasing. If we don’t act now, our future is bleak.
