Lok Sabha Question No. 806 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-21
Subject: Restoration of Water Bodies
Ministry: JAL SHAKTI
Asked by: Sarmistha Sethi

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 806

ANSWERED ON 21.07.2022

## RESTORATION OF WATER BODIES

806 SHRIMATI SARMISTHA SETHI

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state: -

- (a) the details of the total number of water bodies in the country, State-wise;

(b) whether the Government has formulated any national level guidelines for restoration of water bodies and if so, the details thereof; and

(c) the steps taken by the Government for conservation and restoration of all the vanishing water bodies in the country?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI

( SHRI BISHWESWAR TUDU )

a. Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the first Census of Water Bodies in convergence with the Sixth Minor  Irrigation  Census.    As  per  currently  available  data,  the  provisional  figures  of    State-wise number of water bodies is provided in Annexure A .

b. & c. Yes, Sir. Guidelines for Repair, Renovation and Restoration of Water Bodies (RRR of WBs) component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY)-Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP), under which  this  Ministry  is  providing  financial  assistance  to  States  for  identified  schemes,  have  been issued  in  January,  2022.  These  guidelines  provide  details  regarding  basic  features  of  the  scheme, funding  pattern  and  the  eligibility  criteria  for  funding,  planning  and  implementation  of  projects, procedure  for  submission  of  proposals  and  release  of  funds,  and  monitoring  and  evaluation arrangements  under  the  scheme.  The  guidelines  are  available  under  the  URL  http://jalshaktidowr.gov.in/policies-guideline/guidelines.

Further, Central Pollution Control Board has issued 'Indicative Guidelines for Restoration of Water Bodies',  which  give  general  recommendations  on  augmenting  capacity  of  water  bodies  and  on improvement of water quality in them. These guidelines are available at URL https://cpcb.nic.in/wqm/Ind-Guidelines-RestWaterBodies.pdf.

Apart  from  issuing  guidelines  and  providing  financial  assistance  under  RRR  of  WBs  scheme mentioned above, some of the major initiatives taken by Government of India for conservation and restoration of water bodies in the country, are listed below:

1. Rejuvenation of water bodies is also a component under water supply sector of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation  and  Urban  Transformation  (AMRUT)  scheme  under  Ministry  of  Housing  &  Urban Affairs. AMRUT 2.0, launched in October, 2021, includes rejuvenation of water bodies and water conservation.
2. In 2019, Jal Shakti Abhiyan was launched by the Government. This was followed in 2021, by 'Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch The Rain' (JSA:CTR) campaign. The JSA:CTR campaign for the year 2022 has been launched in March 2022, in all districts (rural as well as urban) of the country. The main theme of the campaign is 'Catch the Rain, where it falls, when it falls'. Focused interventions under these annual campaigns taken up by the Government of India and the State Governments, inter-alia, include renovation of traditional and other water bodies/ tanks, enumeration, geo-tagging and making inventory of all water bodies, and removal of encroachments of tanks/ lakes, and de-silting of tanks, and protection of water catchment area.
3. Mission on Amrit Sarovar, aimed at developing and rejuvenating 75 water bodies in each district of the country as a part of celebration of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, has been launched in April, 2022. The Mission works through the States and districts, through refocusing of various ongoing schemes of the Government, as well as inclusion of citizen and non Government resources. The Mission is to be completed by 15th August 2023.
4. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) has provisions for public  works  relating  to  natural  resource  management,  water  conservation  and  water  harvesting structures to augment and improve ground water like underground dykes, earthen dams, stop dams, check dams and roof top rain water harvesting structures in public buildings.

Planning, funding, execution and maintenance  of water bodies, including their restoration, rejuvenation  and  conservation,  is  addressed  by  the  State  Government  concerned.  Government  of India  provides  technical  support  and  in  some  cases,  partial  financial  assistance  under  the  existing schemes, to facilitate the State Governments.

****

ANNEXURE A STATE-WISE NUMBER OF WATER BODIES REPORTED IN THE FIRST CENSUS OF WATER BODIES (PROVISIONAL)

| S.No.   | States/UTs               | Total number of water bodies reported   |
|---------|--------------------------|-----------------------------------------|
| (1)     | (2)                      | (3)                                     |
| 1       | ANDAMAN &NICOBAR ISLANDS | 3,528                                   |
| 2       | ANDHRA PRADESH           | 1,90,777                                |
| 3       | ARUNACHAL PRADESH        | 993                                     |
| 4       | ASSAM                    | 1,72,492                                |
| 5       | BIHAR                    | 45,793                                  |
| 6       | CHANDIGARH               | 188                                     |
| 7       | CHHATISGARH              | 34,000                                  |
| 8       | GOA                      | 1,463                                   |
| 9       | GUJARAT                  | 54,069                                  |
| 10      | HARYANA                  | 14,898                                  |
| 11      | HIMACHAL PRADESH         | 88,017                                  |
| 12      | JAMMU &KASHMIR           | 9,765                                   |
| 13      | JHARKHAND                | 1,07,598                                |
| 14      | KERALA                   | 55,734                                  |
| 15      | MAHARASHTRA              | 97,062                                  |
| 16      | MANIPUR                  | 1,658                                   |
| 17      | MEGHALAYA                | 13,332                                  |
| 18      | MIZORAM                  | 2,185                                   |
| 19      | NAGALAND                 | 1,432                                   |
| 20      | ODISHA                   | 1,81,837                                |
| 21      | PUDUCHERRY               | 1,171                                   |
| 22      | PUNJAB                   | 16,012                                  |
| 23      | RAJASTHAN                | 16,939                                  |
| 24      | SIKKIM                   | 134                                     |
| 25      | TAMIL NADU               | 1,06,957                                |
| 26      | TELENGANA                | 64,056                                  |
| 27      | TRIPURA                  | 36,239                                  |
| 28      | UTTARAKHAND              | 3,096                                   |
| 29      | UTTAR PRADESH            | 2,45,088                                |
| 30      | WEST BENGAL              | 7,47,480                                |
| 31      | KARNATAKA*               | 19,351                                  |
| 32      | MADHYA PRADESH*          | 97,285                                  |