Rainwater Harvesting

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The ancient ingenuity of water harvesting
Technical manual for Rainwater Harvesting

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a simple method by which rainfall is collected for future usage. The collected rainwater may be stored, utilised in different ways or directly used for recharge purposes. With depleting groundwater levels and fluctuating climate conditions, RWH can go a long way to help mitigate these effects. Capturing the rainwater can help recharge local aquifers, reduce urban flooding and most importantly ensure water availability in water-scarce zones. Though the term seems to have picked up greater visibility in the last few years, it was, and is even today, a traditional practice followed in rural India. Some ancient rainwater harvesting methods followed in India include madakas, ahar pynes, surangas, taankas and many more.

This water conservation method can be easily practiced in individual homes, apartments, parks, offices and temples too, across the world. Farmers have recharged their dry borewells, created water banks in drought areas, greened their farms, increased sustainability of their water resources and even created a river. Technical know how for the rooftop RWH with direct storage can be availed for better implementation. RWH An effective method in water scarce times, it is also an easily doable practice. Practical advice is available in books written by Indukanth Ragade & Shree Padre, talks by Anupam Mishra and other easy to follow fun ways. 

Read our FAQ on Rainwater Harvesting and have many basic questions answered.

Featured Articles
September 21, 2022
The Chakla bavdi of Chanderi
The unique design and functioning of the Chakla bavdi in Chanderi Madhya Pradesh is another example of the water wisdom of our ancestors, which needs to be conserved and passed on to the future generations.
Chakla Bavdi at Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh (Image Source: Shirole, S. 2022. Architectural eloquence: Water harvesting structure in Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh (India). Ancient Asia, 13: 9, pp. 1–13)
July 14, 2022
Ichamati: River of poetry is dying a slow death
The river is faced with the dual problem of flood plain encroachment and growing levels of water pollution
Illegal transverse check dams (Badhals) built on Ichamati near a village in Basirhat (Image: Prithviraj Nath @ TheWaterChronicles)
July 11, 2022
Greening of barren lands – the local way
The Chauka system of Rajasthan can not only provide a sustainable way to manage water resources in water stressed regions, but also support livelihoods through development of pastures.
Can greening of barren lands happen? (Image Source: India Water Portal Flickr photos)
March 21, 2022
Celebrating the role of hill women in springshed development and governance
Recognizing women's accumulated knowledge and adaptive capacities in springshed management
Van Panchayat Samiti discussing the matters related to forest (Image: Varun Raja)
November 9, 2021
Potential of rainwater management in Bundelkhand
Building resilient agricultural system through groundwater management interventions in degraded landscapes of Bundelkhand region
Charkhari talab in Bundelkhand (Image: IWP Flickr)
July 23, 2021
Yavatmal’s water security crisis
Improper location, poor operation and maintenance of water harvesting and recharge structures threaten water security in Yavatmal
A study assesses the current status of the water harvesting and recharge structures in Yavatmal (Image: India Water Portal Flickr)
Films on Watershed Development and Dairying by Samaj Pragati Sahayog
Samaj Pragati Sahayog has recently completed production of two films, which are now available for purchase.
Samaj Pragati Sahyog
Posted on 06 Jan, 2011 05:42 PM

For the last 2 decades Samaj Pragati Sahayog (SPS) has implemented watershed management projects in an attempt to integrate regeneration of natural resources with livelihood security of the poor

SPS has recently completed production of two films, which are now available for purchase.

Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Bill (2009)
Maharashtra ensured of sustainable and adequate supply of groundwater, maintained prescribed quality and protected public drinking water sources.
Government of Maharashtra
Posted on 05 Jan, 2011 07:32 PM

The Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Bill, 2009 aims to facilitate and ensure sustainable and adequate supply of groundwater of prescribed quality, for various category of users, through supply and demand management measures, protecting public drinking water sources and to establish the State Groundwater Authority and District Level Authorities to manage and to regulate, with community participation, the exploitation of groundwater within the State of Maharashtra.

Climate change: Vulnerability and adaptation experiences from Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh – A report by SDC
Strengthening the resilience of local communities to conditions of unfavourable weather
AFPRO
Anna Bruderle
INFRAS
Intercooperation
MSSRF
Othmar Schwank
Rupa Mukherjee
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
Posted on 05 Jan, 2011 06:44 PM

This document discusses the process oriented programme of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) on Vulnerability Assessment (V&A) and Enhancing Adaptive Capacity to Climate Change initiated in the semi-arid regions of India. The aims of this programme include strengthening the resilience of local communities to conditions of unfavourable weather, like adverse alterations in temperature and precipitation leading to the more frequent occurrence of drought and to use the experiences for policy development for climate change adaptation measures at various levels.

Over 60 per cent of the cultivated area in India is rainfed & unfavorable and uncertain rainfall patterns will seriously affect the food, drinking water and livelihood security of millions of children, women and men. Since the initiation of this project, the emphasis on proactive research on adaptation mechanisms has increased at the national level. 

The present decade may mark the beginning of a new climate era, characterized by extreme and often unpredictable weather conditions and rise in sea levels. The greatest casualty of climate change will be food, water and livelihood security.

Droplets: e-Newsletter from Everything About Water - December 2010
The Highlights of the Droplets Newletter - Everything About Water
Everything About Water
Posted on 29 Dec, 2010 10:56 AM

Article and Image Courtesy: Everything About Water

Droplets newsletter

The December edition of Droplets e-newsletter published by the Everything About Water had the following highlights:

Blueprint for farm growth
Acting with determination and firm action, it should be possible for India to step up its agricultural growth rate to 10 per cent.
Mohan Dharia
Posted on 28 Dec, 2010 03:12 PM

 

Since the start of the 11th Five Year Plan, the growth rate in agriculture has virtually remained stagnant. A scene at a paddy field in the outskirts of Hyderabad.

Saltscapes - Dholavira, Gujarat - A guest post by Amitangshu Acharya and Ayan Ghosh
Watch the beautiful Kachch unravel itself and its treasures in a video documentary.
Amitangshu Acharya
Posted on 27 Dec, 2010 11:41 PM

Guest Post: Text by Amitangshu Acharya, Photographs by Ayan Ghosh

Kachchh – a brilliant halfway between a turmeric yellow Rajasthan and the emerald green Sahyadris – offers an upside down version of life. It tells you that seeds of life and civilisation are often hidden beneath the sands of time in inhospitable terrains.

Guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems by the Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation
Developing a village security plan for providing drinking water to rural households is now the focus.
Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation
Posted on 27 Dec, 2010 07:20 PM

This document by the Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation presents the guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems. The revised National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) Guidelines 2009-2012 issued by Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation has shifted the focus from source development and installation of water supply system for providing drinking water supply to rural household to focus on development of village security plan.

Preparation of strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India – A draft discussion paper by the Department of Drinking Water Supply
Preparing a strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India with technical and financial details to accelerate coverage across the rural land.
Department of Drinking Water Supply (Ministry of Rural Development)
Posted on 26 Dec, 2010 07:27 AM

This draft discussion paper by the Department of Drinking Water Supply (Ministry of Rural Development) deals with the preparation of strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India. The Government of India introduced the Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP) in 1972–73 to support States and UTs with financial and technical assistance to implement drinking water supply schemes in order to accelerate the pace of coverage across rural India.

Benefits, issues and status of WATSAN systems - A survey of an IDWM project supported by Arghyam
An integrated approach to domestic water management using rooftop rainwater harvesting, and eco-sanitation toilets and creating models in the rural set-up
Arghyam
Gouri
MYKAPS
MYRADA
Posted on 22 Dec, 2010 07:56 PM

This paper presents the results of a survey of WATSAN systems implemented under an Integrated Domestic Water Management (IDWM) project supported by Arghyam and implemented by MYRADA and MYKAPS in Bangarpet and H D Kote blocks of Kolar district of Karnataka. Arghyam has promoted Roof-top Rain Water Harvesting (RRWH) and eco-sanitation systems in its various project areas through its partner organizations.

This project aimed at developing an integrated approach to domestic water management. It focused on construction of RRWH and eco-sanitation toilets in four villages in the project area in Kolar with the aim of creating models of integrated management of domestic water and sanitation in a rural set-up.

Mining - An increasing threat to our rivers - Article by Nitya Jacob
Mining constitutes a major, and largely unrecognized, threat to our rivers. It takes away what we have and also destroys whatever is left of it.
Nitya Jacob
Posted on 20 Dec, 2010 12:29 AM

Content Courtesy: Solution Exchange and Nitya Jacob
Author: Nitya Jacob

India’s arteries are choking. Her rivers, the lifeline of hundreds of millions, are over-taxed, polluted and encroached. They are being mined, dammed and emptied of water. Save for the four monsoon months, most rivers are streams of drains, depending on how many cities they pass through. This year people gaped in awe at the River Yamuna (I am sure they were over-awed by other rivers elsewhere too) as for the first time since 1978 looked like a river and not a drain.

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