Increased rainfall alone will not help groundwater recovery
Recently a study was done by a team from IIT Gandhinagar to understand the variability of groundwater storage due to warming climate.
It concluded that, mere increase in rainfall will not help in groundwater recharge.
Key findings of study:
- A warming climate will increase the frequency of hydroclimate-related extreme events (such as floods and droughts).
- As the climate warms, evapotranspiration will increase. Due to this, the availability of water for recharge of ground water will be limited.
- Climate warming will increase the amount of summer monsoon rainfall over northern India by 6–8%.
- Ground water is extracted from deep aquifers in the Indo-Gangetic plain. Due to this, it will be difficult to recover the ground water even after the increase in rainfall.
- According to the World Bank, India is the largest user of ground water in the world. Ground water meets about 80% of the country’s drinking water requirement and two-thirds of water demand for irrigation.
- According to the Central Ground Water Board, about 14% of the ground water blocks are over-exploited. Additionally, 4% are in critical condition.
Measures taken for ground water management:
- The Ministry of Jal Shakti has issued guidelines for regulation and control of ground water extraction.
- Initiatives like Atal Bhu Jal Yojana and National Aquifer Management Project have been launched for effective management and regulation of groundwater.
- India-Groundwater Resource Estimation System (IN-GRES) software is being used.
- Mobile application ‘Jaldoot’ is being used for monitoring the ground water level.
- Per Drop More Crop component has been introduced under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) to improve water use efficiency.
Source – The Hindu