Context

In India around 70 percent of food production is done with the help of irrigation wells and India is entirely dependent on groundwater. 

Groundwater conservation in India

• India constitutes 16 per cent of the world’s population, but the country has only 4% of the world’s freshwater resources. 
• With the changing weather patterns and recurring droughts, India is water stressed.
• 256 of 700 districts have reported ‘critical’ or ‘over-exploited’ groundwater levels.
• India’s water supply but agriculture which consumes over 85 percent of water. 
• With only 40 per cent assured irrigation, farmers depend heavily either on rains or on groundwater for their needs.
• NITI Aayog estimates that 21 major cities, including Delhi, would run out of groundwater by 2030. 
• 6% of economic GDP will be lost by 2050, while water demand will exceed the available supply by 2030.

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NITI Aayog’s report on water scarcity

• A NITI Aayog report in 2018 stated bluntly that- 
• 600 million people, or nearly half of India’s population, face extreme water stress. 
• three-fourths of India’s rural households do not have piped, potable water and rely on sources that pose a serious health risk. 
• India has become the world’s largest extractor of groundwater, accounting for 25 per cent of the total. 
• 70 percent of water sources are contaminated and major rivers are dying because of pollution. 
• Its conclusion: ‘India is suffering from its worst water crisis in its history.’