Groundwater

Featured Articles
October 17, 2022 While informal groundwater markets cater significantly to the needs of smallholder farmers in India, they continue to be unacknowledged and understudied.
Groundwater, a finite resource (Image Source: TV Manoj via Wikimedia Commons)
July 5, 2022 Studies reveal that children are the most vulnerable to the health risks associated with groundwater contamination due to nitrate and fluoride, highlighting the need for urgent remedial measures.
POisoned waters, dangerous outcomes (Image Source: India Water Portal)
April 26, 2022 The water stewardship initiative by WOTR that developed a tool to visualise aquifers has not only helped farmers understand groundwater as a shared resource, but also led to a behavioural change among water users and helped implement groundwater laws and policies.
Groundwater, a fast disappearing resource (Image Source: India Water Portal)
February 13, 2022 A study provides new evidence that drinking water contaminated with arsenic can lead to still births, recurrent pregnancy loss and infertility among women.
A well in Rajasthan (Image Source: IWP Flickr photos)
August 29, 2021 A study shows that high arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bihar is linked with increase in cancer cases. Districts located near the Himalayan river basins have more people with cancer.
Drinking water in Bihar, linked to cancer (Image Source: IWP Flickr photos)
August 26, 2021 This study from Rajasthan found that anthropogenic factors led to nitrate contamination of groundwater. High nitrate levels in drinking water posed major health risks to children.
A well in Rajasthan (Image Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Groundwater depletes in north and east India
Study shows a rapid decline in usable groundwater between 2005 and 2013 leading to the risk of severe food crisis and drinking water scarcity for millions of people. Posted on 23 Apr, 2019 07:12 PM

India is the largest user of groundwater in the world. It uses an estimated 230 km3 of groundwater per year, which is over a quarter of the global total. About 85 percent of rural drinking water needs, 65 percent of irrigation needs and 50 percent of urban drinking water and industrial needs are fulfilled with groundwater.

Crop irrigation with groundwater, powered by electricity in Gujarat. (Image: Tesh, Wikimedia Commons, CC-4.0A-ShareAlike-International)
Making water available for all
Civil society activists champion alternatives to conventional water management solutions implemented by the government. Posted on 23 Apr, 2019 06:48 PM

India, the second largest population in the world, is facing a water crisis with over 600 million people facing acute water shortage, as per a report by Niti Aayog, the government think-tank. India’s water crisis is expected to worsen, threatening the country’s food security as over 80 percent of our water is used in agriculture.

The pollution rates of the river Hindon are alarming. Despite work by conservation groups, the efforts on the part of the government to fix the problem remain uncertain. (Image: Hindi Water Portal)
Almost half of the country reels under drought: Study
News this week Posted on 04 Apr, 2019 07:00 AM

Study reveals that nearly 42 percent of India’s land area is facing drought

India will see more droughts in the future. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)
DDA allows waste dumping on Yamuna floodplains
Policy matter this week Posted on 04 Apr, 2019 06:42 AM

DDA allocates 42.5 acre plot on Yamuna floodplains for waste dumping

Yamuna river in New Delhi (Source: IWP Flickr Photos)
SC sets aside NGT order on Lower Subansiri hydel project
Policy matters this week Posted on 27 Mar, 2019 03:37 PM

Lower Subansiri hydel project: SC seeks review of NGT's order granting nod to the project

Subansiri river in Arunachal Pradesh (Source: Kakul baruah via Wikimedia Commons)
Bullet train project worries activists
News this week Posted on 27 Mar, 2019 03:15 PM

Activists seek President, PM intervention to protect mangrove trees in Maharashtra

A wetland in Mumbai (Source: IWP Flickr photos)
Could the water towers of Asia be drying up soon?
As climate change and urbanisation threaten water security in the HKH region, there is an urgent need for good water governance. Posted on 24 Mar, 2019 11:03 AM

The Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH) cover 3500 kms across eight countries namely Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan.

A view of the Himalayas. (Source: IWP Flickr photos--photo for representation purpose only)
Number crunching helps farmers manage water
Calculating water availability and crop budgeting can prevent over-extraction of groundwater and mounting farm debt. Posted on 23 Mar, 2019 11:45 PM

At 42 years, Bhagwat Ghagare seems young. But he is old enough to have seen his village prosper and decline many times. Farming had traditionally been small and distress migration rampant at Kumbharwadi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra.

The weather station at Randullabad that helps farmers plan their crops. (Photo by Manu Moudgil)
UN World Water Development Report out
News this week Posted on 21 Mar, 2019 07:48 PM

UN releases the World Water Development Report 2019

UN report suggests better management of water resources to ensure equity of water. (Image source: IWP Flickr photos)
Only 31 pc big projects done under AIBP
News this week Posted on 27 Feb, 2019 01:05 PM

In a decade, only a quarter of centrally funded major to medium irrigation schemes completed: Report

Irrigation canal from the Bhima dam. (Source: Nvvchar on Wikipedia)
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