Lok Sabha Question No. 2343 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-03-16
Subject: Availability of Ground Water
Ministry: WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT AND GANAGA REJUVENATION
Asked by: J.C. DIVAKAR REDDY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2343 ANSWERED ON 16.03.2017

## AVAILABILITY OF GROUND WATER

## 2343.   SHRI J.C. DIVAKAR REDDY

## Will  the  Minister  of  WATER  RESOURCES,  RIVER  DEVELOPMENT  AND  GANGA REJUVENATION be pleased to state:

(a)  the  details  of  surface  vis-a-vis  ground  water  availability  in  the  Rayalaseema  region  of Andhra Pradesh including Anantapur;

(b) the steps taken by the Government to boost this availability and make it more viable and accessible to people;

(c) whether the Government proposes to come up with surface/ground water awareness and restoration scheme in the country to make people realise the importance of water, if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether the Government is thinking about water pricing; and

(e)  if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  efforts  made  by  the  Government  under  Polluter  Pays Principle in industrial regions of the country?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT AND GANGA REJUVENATION

## (DR. SANJEEV KUMAR BALYAN)

(a) River  basin  being  the  natural  hydrological  unit,  the  assessment  of  water  resources availability has been done by Central Water Commission (CWC) in 1993 river basin wise. Some part of Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh falls in Krishna River Basin. As per the assessment by CWC, water availability in Krishna basin is 78.1 Billion Cubic Meters (BCM).

As per the latest assessment of dynamic ground water resources of India (as on 31 st March 2013) jointly carried out by Central Ground Water Board  (CGWB) and State Ground Water Departments,  the  net  annual  ground  water  availability  for  Rayalseema  region  of  Andhra Pradesh  including  Anantapur  District  is  5.51  Billion  Cubic  Metres  (BCM).  District  wise details  of  dynamic  ground  water  resources  assessment  of  Rayalaseema  region  are  at Annexure-I .

(b)  Water  being  a  State  Subject,  State  Governments  undertake  several  measures  for augmenting, conserving and utilizing water resources including boosting availability of water to make it more viable and accessible to people. To support the measures taken by the State Governments,  Central  Government  provides  technical  and  financial  assistance  to  the  State Governments  through  various  schemes  and  programmes.  This  Ministry  provides  technical and financial assistance to the State Governments through various schemes and programmes

viz.  Pradhan  Mantri  Krishi  Sinchai  Yojana  (PMKSY),  Accelerated  Irrigation  Benefits Programme,  Scheme  for  Repair,  Renovation  &  Restoration  of  Water-bodies  etc.  Some  of such initiatives taken by Central Government are as follows:

- A National Perspective Plan (NPP) envisaging inter-basin transfer of water has been formulated by this Ministry to improve water security in the country. The implementation  of  NPP  would  give  added  benefits  of  approximately  35  million hectares  of  additional  irrigation  potential,  34000  mega  watts  (MW)  hydro  power generation,    flood  moderation,  navigation,  drinking  and  industrial  water  supply, fisheries, salinity and pollution control etc.
- Central  Government  has  launched  the  National  Water  Mission  (NWM)  with  the objective  of  conservation  of  water,  minimizing  wastage  and  ensuring  its  more equitable distribution both across and within States through integrated water resources development  and  management.  One  of  the  goals  of  NWM  is  to  increase  water  use efficiency by 20%.
- Improved  water  use  efficiency  in  different  sectors  such  as  in  irrigation  (through micro-irrigation, e.g., drip, sprinkler etc.), industry and households is being encouraged through various initiatives, programmes/ schemes of the Government.
- Central Government has launched Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) with  the  vision  of  extending  the  coverage  of  irrigation  'Har  Khet  ko  Pani'  and improving water use efficiency 'More crop per drop' in a focused manner with end to end  solution  on  source  creation,  distribution,  management,  field  application  and extension activities.
- Water  conservation  and  water  harvesting structures  to  augment  ground  water constitute  a  special  focus  area  for  MGNREGA  works  and  about  2/3rd  of  the expenditure is directly related to construction of such structures.

Some of the steps taken by the Government to boost the availability of ground water through various artificial recharge of ground water and rainwater harvesting measures are mentioned below:

- CGWB  has  implemented  demonstrative  rain  water  harvesting  and  artificial recharge projects in the country including Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh for facilitating the State Governments to replicate the same in similar hydrogeological environment.
- The  National  Water  Policy  (2012)  formulated  by  this  Ministry,  inter-alia, advocates  conservation,  promotion  and  protection  of  water  and  highlights  the need for augmenting the availability of water through rain water harvesting, direct use  of  rainfall  and  other  management  measures.  The  National  Water  Policy (2012)  has  been  forwarded  to  all  State  Governments/  UTs  including  Andhra Pradesh  and  concerned  Ministries/  Departments  of  the  Central  Government  for adoption of the policy.
- CGWB  has  also  prepared  a  conceptual  document  entitled  'Master  Plan  for Artificial  Recharge to Ground Water in India' in 2013, involving ground water scientists/experts.  This Master Plan has been circulated to all State Governments including Andhra Pradesh for implementation.

- Central  Ground  Water  Authority  (CGWA)  has  issued  directives  to  the  Chief Secretaries  of  all  States  and  the  Administrators  of  all  UTs  to  take  measures  to promote/adopt  artificial  recharge  of  ground  water  /  rain  water  harvesting.  30 States/UTs including Andhra Pradesh have made rain water harvesting mandatory by  enacting  laws,  formulating  rules  &  regulations,  including  provisions  in building bye-laws or through suitable Government Orders.
- CGWB  has  taken  up  Aquifer  Mapping  and  Management  Programme  in  the country including Rayalseema region, Andhra Pradesh during XII Plan, under the scheme of Ground Water Management and Regulation. The Aquifer Mapping is aimed to delineate aquifer disposition and their characterization for preparation of aquifer/area  specific  ground  water  management  plans  which  includes  rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge measures.
- CGWB  has  been  organizing  mass  awareness  and  training  programmes  in  the country  including  Rayalaseema  region,  Andhra  Pradesh  to  promote  rain  water harvesting and artificial recharge of ground water.

(c) Water is a state subject. Accordingly, the respective State Governments carry out water conservation  awareness  programmes.  In  addition,  this  Ministry  has  launched  Jal  Kranti Abhiyan (2015-16 to 2017-18) in order to consolidate water conservation and management in the country through a holistic and integrated approach involving all stakeholders, making it a mass  movement. Mass  awareness  programme  is  one  of  the  components  of  Jal  Kranti Abhiyan.

(d)  &  (e)  The  National  Water  Policy,  2012  formulated  by  this  Ministry  has  inter-alia recommended that pricing of water should ensure its efficient use and reward conservation. Equitable  access  to  water  for  all  and  its  fair  pricing,  for  drinking  and  other  uses  such  as sanitation,  agricultural  and  industrial,  should  be  arrived  at  through  independent  statutory Water Regulatory Authority, set up by each State, after wide ranging consultation with all stakeholders.

A  Committee  constituted  by  this  Ministry  on  28.12.2015  under  the  Chairmanship  of  Dr. Mihir  Shah  has  suggested  a  draft  National  Water  Framework  Bill,  2016  which  has emphasized for the application of the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle by the appropriate Government.

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## Annexure-I

(Annexure  referred  to  in  reply  to  Part  (a)  of  the  Unstarred  Question  No.2343  to  be answered on 16.03.2017 in the Lok Sabha regarding 'Availability of Ground Water')

## District Wise Details Dynamic Ground Water Resources Assessment (as on 31 st March 2013) of Rayalaseema Region

**************

| Sl. No.     | District    |   Net Ground Water Availability In Hectare Metre (Ham) |   Annual Ground Water Draft for all uses (in Ham) |   Stage of Ground Water Development (%) |
|-------------|-------------|--------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------|
| 1           | Chittoor    |                                              164882    |                                         117696    |                                      71 |
| 2           | Kadapa      |                                               99258    |                                          69767    |                                      70 |
| 3           | Anantapur   |                                              149537    |                                         140372    |                                      94 |
| 4           | Kurnool     |                                              137065    |                                          64962    |                                      47 |
| Total (Ham) | Total (Ham) |                                              550742    |                                         392797    |                                      71 |
| Total (BCM) | Total (BCM) |                                                   5.51 |                                              3.93 |                                      71 |