IS INDIA PLUMBING THE DEPTHS OF GROUNDWATER?

Water-intensive agriculture and urban demand mean that India is using almost 60% of its groundwater every year.

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Governments have tried to increase supply, reduce demand and regulate consumption. But are these enough?

India is the world's largest groundwater guzzler. It extracted around 245 billion cubic metres (BCM) for irrigating cropland alone in 2011 about 25% of the world's groundwater consumption. More recently, as of 2023, the annual groundwater recharge was around 449 BCM while the extraction rate was 241 BCM, meaning India is drawing roughly 60% of whatever groundwater is available every year.

According to a 2023 report prepared by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), the number of over-exploited assessment units where the rate of extraction exceeded the rate of recharge stood at 11.2% of 6,553 units in 2023.

Of course, national trends obfuscate more worrisome regional ones. India's groundwater crisis becomes most apparent when we take a closer look at its use for agriculture and to quench the thirst of the country's burgeoning urban populace. The 2023 report found that 91% of the groundwater is extractable; the rest is natural discharge. And of the annual extraction, irrigation and domestic consumption divert 87% and 11% respectively. Only 2% is for industrial use.

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The bulk of India's groundwater-stressed areas lie in North and Central India, plus some parts of interior Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Punjab and Haryana: Satellite-based studies have found that between 2003 and 2020, Punjab and Haryana lost 64.6 BCM of groundwater. Between 2002 and 2021, groundwater levels dropped by 70% across all monitored wells in Punjab, with the water table plummeting by more than 4 metres.