https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

India’s First Census of Water Bodies Show ‘Sujalam’ Bengal, UP

Water is a recyclable resource but its availability is limited and the gap between the supply and demand is widening over time. Therefore, concerted efforts are needed to conserve and preserve water bodies.
Indian Masterminds Stories

India finally has its first-ever census on water bodies. The Jal Shakti Ministry released the report enumerating over 24 Lakh water bodies in the country. The top five states which fulfill “sujalam” part of the national song are West Bengal. Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Assam.

The census provides a comprehensive inventory of India’s water resources, including natural and man-made water bodies like ponds, tanks, lakes, and more. It has also collected data on the encroachment of water bodies. The Census also highlighted disparities between rural and urban areas and varying levels of encroachment and revealed crucial insights into the country’s water resources.

The census was launched under the centrally sponsored scheme, Irrigation Census in convergence with the 6th Minor Irrigation Census in order to have a comprehensive national database of all water bodies. The information on all important aspects of the water bodies including their type, condition, status of encroachments, use, storage capacity, status of filling up of storage, etc was collected. It covered all the water bodies both in-use and not.

Of the total 2,424,540 water bodies, 97.1 percent are in rural areas and only 2.9 percent are in urban areas.

The census also took into account all types of uses of water bodies like irrigation, industry, pisciculture, domestic/ drinking, recreation, religious, groundwater recharge etc. Census has been successfully completed and the All India and State-wise reports have been published.

The key features/findings of the Census are as follows:

  • 24,24,540 water bodies have been enumerated in the country, out of which 97.1% (23,55,055) are in rural areas and only 2.9% (69,485) are in urban areas.
  • Top 05 States in terms of number of water bodies are West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Assam which constitute around 63% of the total water bodies in the country.
  • Top 05 States in terms of number of water bodies in urban areas are West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Tripura, whereas in rural areas, top 5 States are West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Assam.
  • 59.5% of water bodies are ponds, followed by tanks (15.7%), reservoirs (12.1%), Water conservation schemes/percolation tanks/check dams (9.3%), lakes (0.9%) and others (2.5%).
  • 55.2% of water bodies are owned by private entities whereas 44.8% of water bodies are in the domain of public ownership.
  • Out of all public owned water bodies, maximum water bodies are owned by Panchayats, followed by State Irrigation/State WRD.
  • Out of all private owned water bodies, maximum water bodies are in hands of Individual owner/farmer followed by group of individuals and other private bodies.
  • Top 05 States which lead in the private owned water bodies are West Bengal, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Jharkhand.
  • Out of all ‘in use’ water bodies, major water bodies are reported to be used in pisciculture followed by Irrigation.
  • Top 05 States wherein major use of water bodies is in pisciculture are West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh;
  • Top 05 States wherein major use of water bodies is in irrigation are Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal and Gujarat.
  • 78% water bodies are man-made water bodies whereas 22% are natural water bodies. 1.6% (38,496) water bodies out of all the enumerated water bodies are reported to be encroached out of which 95.4% are in rural areas and remaining 4.6% in urban areas.
  • The information on water spread area was reported in respect of 23,37,638 water bodies. Out of these water bodies, 72.4% have water spread area less than 0.5 hectare, 13.4% have water spread area between 0.5-1 hectare, 11.1% have water spread area between 1-5 hectares and remaining 3.1% of water bodies have water spread area more than 5 hectares.

The final results and completion of this report has been made possible by the strenuous efforts of all the officers and staff of Minor Irrigation (Stat) Wing of the Ministry of Jal Shakti under the supervision and support of Secretary, Department of Water Resources, RD & GR, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Shri Pankaj Kumar, as well as dedicated technical support provided by National Informatics Centre and determined efforts made by the State/UT Governments.

The Census report is available on Department’s website: https://jalshakti-dowr.gov.in. Key results are also disseminated through Bhuvan portal.


Indian Masterminds Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Govt
5 Officers Reshuffled in Uttarakhand Secretariat
Indian Oil IOCL
Indian Oil to Invest Rs. 24,000 Crore in Gujarat for Refinery Expansion and Petrochemical Projects
IFS Indian Forest Service resized (IFoS)
14 IFS and 6 State Forest Service Officers Transferred in Madhya Pradesh, HU Khan Made CF&CEO (CAMPA) at HQ, Bhopal
Concor and gail MoU
CONCOR and GAIL Sign MoU to Promote Clean Fuel and Green Logistics
Tiger
Gurugram Jungle Safari Project Scaled Down to 2,500–3,000 Acres Amid Environmental Concerns
Concor
CONCOR to Consider Final Dividend for FY2025 in Upcoming Board Meeting
Birdev Siddapa Dhone
From Herding Livestock to UPSC Glory: Kolhapur's Birdev Siddapa Dhone Secures AIR 551
THDC
THDC Leads Innovation with Variable Speed Technology in India’s First 1000 MW Tehri Pumped Storage Project
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Aditya Vikram Agarwal
The Shouts of Joy Were Real: Aditya’s UPSC Rank 9 Was a Family Celebration
Dr Lokesh M IAS
E-Rickshaw Chaos, Waterlogging, Traffic Mess — Can Noida Fix Its Daily Chaos? | Exclusive with Dr Lokesh M, IAS
IRS Padmapani Bora UPSC
IRS Padmapani Bora’s 16-Year-Long Journey in Governance
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
Aditya Vikram Agarwal
The Shouts of Joy Were Real: Aditya’s UPSC Rank 9 Was a Family Celebration
“UPSC is not the only path. If you are in any field… UPSC is not the only way to serve the nation. Be...
Raj Krishna Jha UPSC
Managing Study with a Full-Time Job, 4 Failures, & a Dream: UPSC Topper Raj Krishna Jha's Journey | Exclusive
From repeated failures to AIR 8, Raj Krishna Jha’s UPSC success proves that perseverance and strategic...
Utkarsh Yadav UPSC Rajasthan
Brother of Dausa DM Cracks UPSC with AIR 32: Utkarsh Yadav’s Inspiring Journey from Hamindpur to IAS
Utkarsh Yadav, an IIT Roorkee graduate from rural Rajasthan, secured AIR 32 in UPSC 2024 after three...
Social Media
GozJlgrXYAAHoKv
Murals for Cleanliness: Thoothukudi District Launches Art-Inspired Sanitation Drive in Panchayats
Local artists add colour and messages to village walls, promoting hygiene and community pride
Himanshu Nagpal IAS
Varanasi's Beggar Rehabilitation Initiative Recognised by UIDAI, CDO Himanshu Nagpal Shares the News
Mr. Himanshu Nagpal is a 2019-batch IAS officer
IAS Vaishali Chopra
Young IAS Vaishali Chopra Takes a Stand Against Caste Bias During Field Training in Uttar Pradesh
While the issue itself may seem small, the post is resonating widely online for its honest reflection...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Govt
5 Officers Reshuffled in Uttarakhand Secretariat
Indian Oil IOCL
Indian Oil to Invest Rs. 24,000 Crore in Gujarat for Refinery Expansion and Petrochemical Projects
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Aditya Vikram Agarwal
Dr Lokesh M IAS
IRS Padmapani Bora UPSC
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT