Avoid Third World War by Recharging Groundwater

This is not the time for great happiness. In the battle of Kurukshetra, Arjuna shot an arrow into the ground to quench the thirst of Bhishma who was lying on the bed.

But the groundwater level has dropped so much in the last few decades that it is now almost impossible to reach it even with a few arrows.

Of course, we only found out about it in a few days. The recent water crisis in Chennai, the report of the Policy Commission, etc. have suddenly opened our eyes.

Words like ‘aquifer’, ‘water table’, ‘water footprint’, ‘water-market’, and even ‘water mafia’ have entered our dictionary. We have learned that by 2040-50, ‘Sujlang’ India may become waterless.

If we don’t know exactly where the water comes from and where it goes after use, we will have an idea about its waste and its consequences!

Most of the world’s water resources are unfit for human consumption. Only 3% of the world’s water is freshwater, the rest is sea saltwater. Most of this 3% (7.6%) is ice, which means we are out of our hands.

Of the remaining 31.3%, 30.1% is groundwater and 1.2% is groundwater — that is, rivers, ponds, lakes, and wetlands — from which we quench our thirst. In terms of quantity, this sweet water is enough to quench the thirst of the people of the world. But not all water is always available where it is needed. This is the beginning of the world’s water crisis. This may lead to the third world war.

The water table is going down dangerously for this excessive drainage. The rate of drainage has become much higher than the normal recharge of water level in rains.

Thus, if the soil under the water table is saturated with water, the water can leak and reach the underground reservoir and recharge it.

A lot of environmentalists are working to save groundwater. In India, Rajendra Singh (Water Man of India), Amla Ruia, Aabid Surti, Ayyappa Masagi, Shirish Apte are the most famous person who has revolutionized the groundwater saving arena in India.

Whatever is Happening, Whatever could happen to Save Water?

Fresh Water is Rare in the World

Only three percent of the world’s water is freshwater. Everything else is sea saltwater. 11 percent of the world’s fresh water is groundwater that can be found up to a depth of 600 meters. This water is used to lift.

Excessive water extraction and reckless use of this water is going to deplete this invaluable resource of nature. Its quality and quantity are both declining.

Distribution of Fresh Water to the Earth

8 percent glaciers and ice caps, 11 percent up to 600 meters deep, 11 percent below 800 meters, and the remaining 1 percent lakes, streams, and rivers.

Water Crisis Calculation

• The water picture of a country can be understood from the calculation of the per capita water supply of the citizens of that country.
• According to UNESCO, the total usable water for the 125 crore people of our country is 800-1200 crore cubic meters (BCM). In other words, the per capita water supply is less than 1000 cubic meters (cm). If the amount is less than 1800 cm by international standards, then the country can be considered as a water crisis.
• In other words, India lags far behind in terms of per capita water supply due to its large population, although in 1951 the per capita measure was 517 cm. According to an Indian company, the average will fall to 614 cm by 2025. Not only the amount of supply but also the shortage of drinking water is another aspect of the water crisis in India.

Why Water Level is Very Low in Big Cities?

Different corporations in urban areas have different laws or rules in this regard. But in most of the metropolitan cities of India, there is no obligation to follow this rule. That is why big cities have multi-story groundwater systems.

• Wells are never built to store water. The well connects to the groundwater source. The fluctuation of well water depends on the fluctuation of groundwater level during the monsoon.
• Even after many days of rain, water seeps from groundwater sources and collects in wells. In this way, water is obtained from the well.
• Wherever you collect water from bore wells, no matter what the soil is, rocky, laterite, or rough, rainwater just seeps into the ground.
• All those bore wells become dry at one time or another. None before. Either or later.
• Use bore wells differently. That is, arrange to send water to the ground with the help of a dried bore well. For this: a percolation pit needs to be built on top of it.

What is Groundwater?

Not only do Glacier Rivers receive some ice-melt water throughout the year, but other rivers (such as the Narmada-Krishna-Kaberi in southern India) and ponds-canals receive water from where, of course, from rain. Just below the ground is a layer of groundwater, called a ‘water table’.

This water body, which is basically made up of rainwater, provides water to our various reservoirs. Below this is the aquifer, which is somewhere near the surface of the water and somewhere deep in the ground in an almost isolated state. Just as water is evaporated (discharged) from a body of water (rivers, ponds) that are exposed to the ground, so it is recharged during rains. Rainwater seeps in and reaches the water table easily. So this groundwater reserve is renewable even if not inexhaustible.

What is the Reason for the Gradual Decrease in the Amount of Groundwater?

Over time, the population has grown, lifestyles have changed, and agriculture and industry have improved. Thousands of different needs of water have been created with time. Demand has also increased. Groundwater reserves have been used to meet the additional need. Water is pumped out of the water table and aquifer.

This trend has grown so much since about 1950 that many of us don’t know that 50% of our total drinking water, 40% of industrial water, and 20% of irrigation water now comes from underground reservoirs. The water table is going down dangerously of this excessive drainage. The rate of drainage has become much higher than the normal recharge of water level in rains.

Thus, if the soil under the water table is saturated with water, the water can leak and reach the underground reservoir and recharge it. But the water does not reach the aquifer by leaking water from the bottom of the water table which has a layer of clay or hard rock; when there is more water, it rolls along and goes to the sea. There are several such areas in South Bengal. A few years ago, at the beginning of the monsoon, two or three days of continuous rainwater went into the sea.

So the aquifer, which is isolated at the bottom of the water table, pumps water out of it and the water does not recharge all the time normally. But who judges all this while putting water in a deep tube well! This freshwater cannot return directly to the aquifer after use. Mixing with the saltwater of the sea, and then returning to the ground through the vapor-cloud-rain cycle, it does not always reach the ground.

And in this way the ground water of different regions is getting empty. The water of the well is going down, the ponds, canals and rivers are also drying up. It has a direct impact on the environment. According to data sent by NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (Grace) satellite in 2015, India is one of the few countries where groundwater is rapidly depleting due to the misuse of water.

What are the Ways to Conserve Groundwater?

Not only renew and conserve groundwater, but also increase water use in alternative ways. According to the United Nations, a person needs 5 liters of water to eat all day, 20 liters for sanitation, 15 liters for bathing and 10 liters for cooking.

A total of 50 liters of water is required daily by a person. Statistics show that only 20 to 25 percent of the water that falls to the ground due to rain remains fresh water. The rest of the water becomes rivers, canals and estuaries and mixes with the salt water of the sea and becomes unusable.

According to experts, if the roof of a 6-square-meter house can hold rainwater, it will be able to meet the water needs of at least 40 people all year round. The best way to reduce the use of groundwater as much as possible is to manage rainwater harvesting.

How to Save Rain Water?

There are three aspects to any rainwater harvesting system. There are two types of rainwater harvesting systems.

• Arrangements for collecting rainwater from the roof for household needs
• Water retention system in or near the field for additional irrigation in agriculture.

Six Basic Elements of Rainwater Harvesting

Catchment: roof or water catchment system.

Transport: A channel or pipe to carry water to the storage place from where the roof or water is caught.

Cleaning the roof or catchment area: To avoid getting dirty with rain water: First flush diverter system to filter the water.

Water storage: Insect free tank or cistern where water can be stored.

Refining: Filtration process by use of ozone and UV light will be helpful to re-use collected rain water for drinking purpose.

Precautions During Rain Water Collection

1. The roof should always be kept clean and tidy.
2. The mouth of the pipe through which the water comes will need to be filtered so that the water can be freed from dust, sand, or other dirt.
3. If the collected water is stored for a few days, the dust settles.
4. The area where the water will be caught should be tiled in porcelain or stone as they are corrosive and easy to clean.
5. The stored water should be disinfected as much as possible and sent underground in various ways.
6. Final precautions should be taken to collect rainwater in the vicinity of chemical, nuclear, or biological plants so that waste products or toxic chemicals from these factories do not contaminate the stored water in any way.

Methods and Technology for Groundwater Recharging

In rural areas, rainwater is stored as a unit of watershed. The method of spreading ground water is widely used.

Rainwater Harvesting

Wells and Tube-wells

In the water plentifull region, rainwater can penetrate easily through different layers of soil.

Wells and tube wells are being used in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Assam and West Bengal in northern and eastern India.

According to Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), “scheme ‘Artificial Recharge to Ground water through Dug wells’ is also being implemented. The scheme is being implemented in over exploited, Critical and Semi-critical blocks (administrative) in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat by the respective State Governments in association with Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), CGWB, NABARD, NGOs etc. This scheme involves installation of recharge structures in the existing irrigation dug wells of the beneficiary farmers in the affected areas to facilitate ground water recharge. Under the scheme, subsidy is being given to small, marginal and large category farmers for construction of recharge pit near the existing irrigation dug well.”

Ponds and Lakes

Rainwater is stored in natural and artificial reservoirs or ponds for irrigation during the monsoon season. Rainwater cannot be stored underground by penetrating rocky terrain and the impenetrable rock layer of the Deccan Plateau.

This is composed of hard and impermeable rocks, so large areas of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka are irrigated by constructing ponds or reservoirs.

Irrigation Canal

Irrigation is done mainly with the help of irrigation canals in large areas of rivers. Irrigation canals are generally of two types, viz., (A) perennial canals and (b) flood canals.

Constant Canal

A canal cut from a river which has water all the year round is called perpetual canal. As a result of keeping the water high by building dams in the river, there is water in the canal all the year round. And this water is used for irrigation. In Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, water is irrigated mainly through canals.

Flood Canal

The flood canal is usually filled with water in monsoon floods. Many flood canals are found in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and West Bengal.

Ways of Conserving and Storing Ground Water in Agriculture

85% of the water used in the country is spent on agriculture, which will suffer the most in the event of a water crisis.

So it is time to think about how to conserve water as much as possible by minimizing groundwater wastage in agriculture, and this is possible through various agricultural technologies, one of which is advanced scientific irrigation.

Among the various irrigation systems currently in use in agriculture, the most important are- (1) wells and tube wells, (2) ponds and reservoirs and (3) irrigation canals.

Groundwater Recharge Pit

In rural areas, rainwater is stored as a unit of watershed. The method of spreading ground water is widely used. Because, it allows a lot of water to be recharged.

Different methods are used to prevent water from being wasted on slopes, small rivers or large rivers or canals.

In urban areas, rainwater runoff from rooftops or paved or unpaved roads is wasted. This water can be retained in the groundwater table and used when needed.

In urban areas, rainwater harvesting systems are designed to capture and recharge water. Significant recharge pits among the various technologies of rainwater conservation on the roofs of houses in urban areas.

Features of Recharge Pit

• Recharge pits can be used to send groundwater to the polymer-rich areas where permeable rocks are at the top of the ground or just below the ground.
• In this method, the size of the roof of the house should be 100 square meters. Water can be recharged in shallow water levels, these houses are built to suit it.
• Recharge pits can be of any size, any size. It is usually 1-2 meters wide and 2-3 meters deep. The pit is loaded with 5-20 cm boulder, 5-10 mm gravel, large granular sand (1.5-2 mm). The bottom of the pit has a boulder at the bottom, gravel at the top, and sand at the top so that the flowing water that is caught is deposited on top of the coarse sand and can be easily removed. For small-sized roofs: The pit can be filled with broken bricks and stones.
• A mesh is used on the roof to prevent dust, dirt, leaves, or other solid waste from mixing with the water. A filtration room/collection room could also be set up on the land to purify the water before recharging.
• The top layer of sand should be cleaned occasionally. As a result, the amount of recharge will always be right.
• To cancel the first section of the monsoon: An alternative arrangement has to be made before the collection room.

Gabion Structure and Percolation Tank

Gabion Structure

• It is a kind of check dam, built on top of the current to control the current. There is virtually no flooded area behind the current.
• The small dam is made of locally obtained boulders and is held in place by a steel wire tied to the two banks of the stream.
• The height of such dams is usually 0.5 m. This type of dam is usually used where the current flow is less than 10 meters.
• Excess water flows over this structure and some extra water is already stored for recharge. The sediment in the stream is deposited in the gaps of the boulder. From time to time trees grow on the embankment. As a result, it became almost impossible for water to escape through the dam. As a result, after the rains, the dam holds water on the ground for a long time and sends a sufficient amount of water underground.

Percolation Tank

• The percolation tank is an artificial underground reservoir. This water table is extremely permeable. So the ground floor of this reservoir has the ability to send water underground in a very good way. As a result, the purpose of building such tanks is to recharge water.
• Percolation tanks are usually built on second and third-tier currents. In this case, the water flow is always flowing downwards on the broken and eroded rock.
• At the bottom, there should be a suitable number of wells and arable land in the recharge area. To use recharged groundwater: These are very important.
• Percolation tanks are built depending on the capacity of the percolation of the water sent down. Typically the capacity of a percolation tank is 0.1 to 0.5 mcm. This type of tank can hold water from a height of 3 to 4.5 meters.
• Percolation tanks are usually earthen dams. For only shields: paved structures are used. The main purpose of the percolation tank is to recharge groundwater. So there is nothing objectionable even if some water comes out from the bottom of it. There is no need for a cut-off trench if the dam is 4 and a half meters high. Natural land plays an important role in recharging water.

Dug-well Recharge

Abandoned or running wells can be used for this purpose. However, they need to be cleaned and removed before being used as a recharge structure.

The recharge water is pumped from the sedimentation chamber through a pipe. The pipeline reaches the bottom of the well or is kept below the water level so that the water does not spread or air bubbles are formed in the water level.

The cost of a borewell recharge may vary from Rs 20,000 to Rs 32,000 depending on the design.

According to Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), the “scheme ‘Artificial Recharge to Groundwater through Dug wells’ is also being implemented. The scheme is being implemented in overexploited, Critical and Semi-critical blocks (administrative) in the States of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Gujarat by the respective State Governments in association with Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), CGWB, NABARD, NGOs, etc. This scheme involves the installation of recharge structures in the existing irrigation dug wells of the beneficiary farmers in the affected areas to facilitate groundwater recharge. Under the scheme, the subsidy is being given to small, marginal and large category farmers for construction of recharge pit near the existing irrigation dug well.”

Rechargeable water should be silt free. Arrangements have to be made to remove the silt. The water should be stored at the beginning in a silt-free filtered chamber. Will be recharged from there.

Chlorine should be applied occasionally to prevent bacterial infections.

Groundwater Dam or Sub-Surface Dyke

Sub-surface dyke or underground dam is a dam located across a stream that impedes the flow of water and provides water storage below ground level. This should be done to ensure that the water does not fall on the surface of the dam; otherwise the dam is likely to overflow and overflow.

In case of such dams, the valley has to be wide. There should be a soft surface and the waterfall should be narrow.

After selecting a suitable place, a hole of 1-2 m width should be dug along the width of the stream. That hole will reach the impermeable layer of soil. The hole should be filled with mud, brick/concrete. It should be kept up to 0.5 m below the soil level.

To protect the face of the dyke: The top can be covered with 3000 psi PVC sheet (400 to 600 gauge) or low density polythene sheet (200 gauge).

Due to the fact that the water is kept in the reservoir, the possibility of water entering the surrounding land is reduced. The land above the reservoir can be used even after the dam is built. Water does not evaporate from the reservoir. Not only that, sediment is less likely to fall into the reservoir. Incidents such as dam collapses are unlikely to occur in the case of such reservoirs.

Read the Previous Publication

Recharge Shaft

• It is the most efficient and low-cost usable technology. In the case of stagnant water, it is possible to use it very effectively where there is a barrier to water penetration through the soil layer.
• If the surface is not very convenient, then the soil has to be cut to build such a shaft. The diameter of such a shaft is about 2 meters.
• The shaft reaches the point where the soil layer is permeable, which can send water deeper into the soil. There is no need to touch the groundwater. There is no need to touch the level.
• The online shaft should be filled first with boulder/stone, then with gravel / coarse-grained sand.
• In the case of lined shafts, the water that will be recharged is sent through small conductor pipes. The conductor pipe goes up to the filter pack.
• This type of water recharge technology is very suitable for village ponds where a shallow soil layer obstructs the flow of water to the reservoir.
• It has been observed that during the monsoon, the village pond becomes full but due to silt, the water does not get a chance to enter the groundwater in that way. That is why the surrounding tubewells or wells become dry. The water in the pond also evaporates so the villagers cannot use that water properly.
• Excess water can be arranged to reach the ground by placing a recharge shaft in the pond. Recharge shafts are 0.5 to 3 m in diameter and 10 to 15 m deep. Its diameter and depth depend on how much water is available. The direction on the shaft will be above the bottom of the tank.
• Brick building work is done at a depth of 1 to 2 meters at the top so that the structure is properly maintained.
• With the help of this technology, it is possible to recharge up to 50 percent of the water stored in village ponds underground. The rest of the water can be used by the villagers for their daily activities.

Check Dam/Cement Plug/Drain Dam

• The check dam is built along small streams. However, the slope of the land needs to be moderate. The soil here should be permeable and easily eroded so that the collected water can be recharged in a very short time.
• The water that is stored here is obtained from streams. Its height is usually less than two meters. Excess water is allowed to flow through the dam. Occasional water retention is made at the bottom of the stream to prevent excess water from spreading.
• To make the most of the water flow: Many check dams can be built regionally. So that the facility of recharging in a regional way can be built.
• Cement bags filled with soil can be used as walls. These create obstacles in the case of small drains. Trenches are dug in some places in the middle of the ditch and rows of asbestos sheets are placed on either side of it. The space in the middle of the row is filled with soil. In this way, low-cost check dam is constructed. The top of the stream can be sloped with a soil-filled cement bag to make the structure more stable.

Factors Affecting Groundwater Recharge

Groundwater recharge depends on several factors such as infiltration capacity, stochastic characteristics of rainfall, and climate factors. The spatial and temporal distribution of the rainfall mainly controls the natural groundwater recharge.

Disadvantages of Groundwater Discharging

Future lack of groundwater is one of the major notable effects of excess groundwater extraction. This often leads to water shortages.

As groundwater resources dwindle, so does the supply of clean water to all people. Besides, ground water pollution is also increasing.

If the water resources are depleted, or if it continues to be polluted, the public health movement will suffer as much as it will adversely affect the ecosystem.

Current Status of Groundwater in India

While India accounts for only two percent of the world’s landmass, India accounts for one-fifth of the world’s population. So the pressure on the groundwater is normal here. The amount of groundwater extracted in India is more than the combined amount of groundwater extracted in China and the United States.

Citing a report, the article said India accounted for 25% of the world’s groundwater in 2011. According to the article, the ratio of groundwater abstraction to total groundwater in India is 0.6, which means that 80 percent of the amount of groundwater stored is being withdrawn.

India accounts for 30% of the world’s irrigated agricultural land. A large portion of irrigation comes from groundwater reserves. In addition, 80% of the filtered drinking water supplied across the country comes from groundwater. The situation is exacerbated by the mixing of sewage with groundwater. There are also geological reasons for arsenic and fluoride to mix with drinking water. As groundwater is being extracted, the tendency of arsenic and fluoride to mix with drinking water is increasing.

Kolkata is Facing a Crisis due to the Unsustainable Cost of Groundwater

Income 20 crores, but the expenditure is 30 crores. The daily difference is 10 crores. And, as this gap continues to grow day by day, environmentalists are growing apprehensive.

The account is not about the financial income and expenditure of any organization. This is the calculation of groundwater accumulation and drainage in Kolkata. According to a report by the Central Groundwater Board, an average of 204 million liters of groundwater is stored in Kolkata every day.

But a little more than 30 crore five lakh liters is taken daily. According to surveyors at the Central Groundwater Board, the gap between income and expenditure is widening year by year as neither the general public, municipalities nor various industry bodies are aware enough. They fear that in the next 10-15 years this gap will exceed 30 crores. The city will be in severe water crisis.

According to a survey report of the board, the ground water level in Kolkata has dropped by about 14 meters as compared to 1956.

According to the researchers of the council, there are different water levels at different depths in the ground. The water level in the middle of the groundwater reservoir is falling by an average of 0.49 meters per year. The annual water level in the depth of the reservoir is 0.21 m. And, researchers at the Groundwater Board have largely blamed the concrete jungle that has been raging in Kolkata for the past few years for lowering the water level.

According to the council’s calculations, since 1999, there has been a sudden increase in pressure on groundwater in Calcutta. Since then, a multi-storey revolution has started in the metropolis, said a researcher of the Central Groundwater Board.

Under the management of the Central Board, arrangements have been made to hold water underground on the roofs of several houses, including their Kolkata office and Raj Bhavan. But the way in which the balance between groundwater conservation and drainage in the city is being lost, the state government and the municipal authorities need to play a more active role, say Central Board researchers.

Ground Water Status in Tamil Nadu

Only rain can save Chennai from such a terrible situation. The four main reservoirs of the state are dry. People have been standing in line for a long time hoping for a drop of water from the government water tank.

Closed schools-colleges, restaurants Metro rail closed air conditioning device, longing for rain everywhere. The water crisis in the southern Indian state of Chennai has reached alarming proportions.

Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, is suffering from the Chennai Water Crisis. Wherever you go there is no water, no water echoing.

However, experts say that one of the reasons for the current unprecedented water crisis in Chennai is that the Chennai Rainwater harvesting system is no longer being used as it was 15 years ago.

The most worrying thing is that as one concrete jungle after another has developed in the area, the opportunities for water conservation are also declining. So to survive this crisis, the people of Chennai have to be diligent in retaining rainwater.

Project by Government of India to Save Ground Water

Planning and Projects to Rescue Ground Water Level in India

• According to an official of the Union Ministry of Water Resources and Rural Development, the central government has decided to spend 75% of the 100-day work project on groundwater conservation projects as advised by water researchers. Narendra Modi has also announced this in the program ‘Mann Ki Baat’. The Union Ministry of Water Conservation and Rural Development has also set up several groundwater reclamation projects. These include Jyotigram Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchani Yojana, and Jal Shakti Abhiyan.
• According to the central government, the projects have already yielded results in several areas in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh (a joint study by NASA and Kharagpur IITs), where people still have to beg for water. However, the officials of the Ministry of Rural Development have admitted that the work of returning groundwater in this way is not being done in an equal manner everywhere.

Atal Bhoo Jal Yojana

In honor of former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on his birth anniversary, the central government has launched the ‘Atal Bhoo Jal Yojana’. Initially, 8300 areas in 78 districts of Maharashtra, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka have been selected for the project.

Initially, Rs 6,000 crore has been allocated for this project. Half of it is being borrowed from the World Bank for this five-year project. It has been informed that funds will be allocated in this regard considering the interests of the states.

The project will be rolled out in every village in the country where the groundwater level has dropped drastically, and not enough drinking water is available. The central government’s sole goal is to ensure that every person in the country has access to the necessary drinking water.

Jal Sakti Abhiyan

From 20 March 2021 to 30 November 2021, the Ministry of Water Power is conducting a nationwide campaign aimed at conserving and conserving rainwater in the pre-monsoon and monsoon season of 2021, in all districts, cities and rural areas of the country.

Five Key Points are Covered in This Campaign

Water conservation and retention of rain water, revival of conventional and other water bodies, reuse of water, provision of water underground, development of irrigation and planting of trees. This water conservation campaign will meet the target in time.

Through this water power campaign project of the Prime Minister, water will be delivered to the remote parts of the country all year round. Just as it will benefit farming, it will save a lot of people from water scarcity in summer. The projects will also further the vision of the late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Project in West Bengal to Save Ground Water

Groundwater storage in 50 out of 341 blocks in West Bengal has decreased by 7. Since 2001, these savings have been gradually decreasing.

According to a report this year, the water level in Hooghly, Nadia, Howrah and a large part of North 24 Parganas fell below 18 meters in summer.

Reports from Purulia, Bankura, South 24 Parganas, East and West Midnapore, Jhargram, Birbhum, East and West Burdwan are also worrying.

Project in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat to save groundwater

Demerits of the Project for Underground Water Recharge

However, many water researchers have questioned the scientific basis of central projects such as hydropower campaigns. Talking to experts, the question has also arisen as to whether the projects have been created.

The way the projects have been designed, there is a risk of premature floods in some areas in the near future, just as there is a risk of salt in the soil increasing in the near future. Many people think that technologies have to be implemented.

In West Bengal, however, groundwater reclamation projects like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh have not yet begun to take effect.

The state government’s ‘catch water, fill water’ project is trying to return water to the ground by cutting the pond. Both the Union Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Water Resources in the state feel that there is still enough groundwater in West Bengal. So there is nothing to worry about water.

Groundwater Act in India and its Drawbacks

The United Nations, though late, has at least acknowledged that the vital relationship between wildlife and the environment has been severed. The sovereign people of the world are waiting for death today. It is unthinkable that when 200 crore people die, their social and economic condition will remain intact.

It is pertinent to note that various laws have been enacted including the Land Act of 1956, Prevention and Control of Water Pollution Act of 1974, Environmental Protection Act of 1978, Inland Fishery Act (1974), Wetlands Act of East Calcutta (2006) and West Bengal Groundwater Resources Act (2006), to protect water resources. But virtually no law could play an effective role because of a lack of state goodwill.

The thunder signal of environmental imbalance is a reality today. Millions of people are affected by water scarcity. From Rabindranath to Vivekananda, many sages expressed concern over the plight of the Ganges. Prominent Indian scientist Meghnad Saha had long ago said that a plan was needed to protect the interests of India’s rivers. We have come a long way since independence, we have prolonged the history of river fragmentation, but we have never studied the ecology of rivers.

Groundwater use can be regulated through the Groundwater Conservation Act. Several other states, including West Bengal, have similar laws. The point of this law is that groundwater cannot be pumped everywhere. This can lead to dehydration of the soil, which can lead to an increase in the amount of sand in the soil.

In all these cases, there is a strong possibility of cracks or collapse of houses in urban areas. Many people use shallow tube wells for irrigation in rural areas. For additional crop production: Irrigation requirements are undeniable. But for him ‌ the danger may increase if the groundwater balance ‌ is lost. The Groundwater Conservation Act focused primarily on the use of shallow tubewells.

Unfortunately, the government often plays a very flexible role in enforcing the law in the needs of the farmers. Different corporations in urban areas have different laws or rules in this regard. But in most of the metropolitan cities of India, there is no obligation to follow this rule. That is why big cities have multi-story groundwater systems.

Methods for Estimating Groundwater Recharge in Humid Regions

Analysis of Health of Aquifer and to Check the Ground Water Level

A lot of techniques and a lot of software are using to check the health of aquifer and to estimate the ground water level, now a days by researchers. In the following table different software are listed with their brief description.

Peoples are Also Searching For Groundwater

Read the Followings to Know about Groundwater Table, Rights and Policy of Groundwater Use

1. Reservoir Level & Storage Bulletin (Link)
2. The groundwater table in India (Link)
3. Groundwater Governance in India Stumbling Blocks for Law and Compliance (Link)
4. Delhi’s Groundwater: Rights and Policy’ (Link)
5. Removal of nitrate from groundwater PPT (Link)
6. 2021 district wise report of groundwater data in Madhya Pradesh (Link)
7. 2021 district wise report of groundwater data in Rajasthan (Link)
8. 2021 district wise report of groundwater data in West Bengal (Link) 

Slogan to Save Water

Conclusion

As well as rainwater conservation, geo-replenish groundwater and reduce wastage of household water. To do this, there are various steps to be used in farming. Will take Water Life Mission Centre and others in the state government co-ordinated with various projects and integrated across the country. Then, all will meet the goal of sustainable water supply.

About the Author

The author is Dr. Arup Giri, Associate Professor of Baba Mastnath University, Rohtak, Haryana, India. To know more about him, you may follow the links.

1. ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Arup-Giri
2. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-arup-giri-b5657391/
3. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/watercomilk/?ref=pages_you_manage
4. Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=hMvFttkAAAAJ&hl=en

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