First-ever waterbody census

The Ministry of Jal Shakti has released the report of the first census of waterbodies.

Key-highlights of the Census

India has 24.24 lakh waterbodies like ponds, tanks and lakes, with West Bengal accounting for the most (7.47 lakh) and Sikkim the least (134).
The report states, “24,24,540 waterbodies have been enumerated in the country, out of which 97.1% (23,55,055) are in rural areas and only 2.9% (69,485) in urban areas.”
As per the report,
- 5 per cent (14,42,993) of waterbodies are ponds
- tanks (15.7 per cent i.e. 3,81,805)
- reservoirs (12.1 per cent i.e. 2,92,280)
- water conservation schemes/percolation tanks/check dams (9.3% i.e. 2,26,217)
- lakes (0.9% i.e. 22,361)
- others (2.5% i.e. 58,884)

What is water body?

The census defines a waterbody as “all natural or man-made units bounded on all sides with some or no masonry work used for storing water for irrigation or other purposes (example industrial, pisciculture, domestic/drinking, recreation, religious, ground water recharge etc)”.
Waterbodies are usually of various types known by different names like tank, reservoirs, ponds and bundhies etc.
A structure where water from ice-melt, streams, springs, rain or drainage of water from residential or other areas is accumulated or water is stored by diversion from a stream, nala or river will also be treated as waterbody.