Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
irrigation requirement was considered viz. 0.36 to 0.937 m for Tamilnadu,
0.4 to 0.75 m for Maharashtra, etc.
Ministry of Water Resources, Government of India, revised the groundwater
resources in 1995. According to the report, the total rechargeable groundwater
resources in the country are computed as 43.19 m.ha.m. The available
groundwater resource for irrigation is 36.08 m.ha.m, of which the utilizable
quantity is 32.47 m.ha.m. The utilizable irrigation potential of the country
has been estimated as 64.05 m.ha., based on crop water requirement and
availability of cultivable land. The stage of groundwater development is
estimated as 55.23% based on irrigation potential created in the country
(35.38 m.ha.). Basin wise groundwater potential is given in Table 2.
Table 2:
Basin-wise Ground Water Potential of India
Sl. No.
Name of Basin
Total Replenishable Ground
Water Resources (km
3
)
1.
Brahmai with Baitarni
4.05
2.
Brahmaputra
26.55
3.
Cambai Composite
7.19
4.
Cauvery
12.30
5.
Ganga
170.99
6.
Godavari
40.65
7.
Indus
26.49
8.
Krishna
26.41
9.
Kutch and Saurashtra Composite
11.23
10.
Madras and South Tamil Nadu
18.22
11.
Mahanadi
16.46
12.
Meghna
8.52
13.
Narmada
10.83
14.
Northeast Composite
18.84
15.
Pennar
4.93
16.
Subarnarekha
1.82
17.
Tapi
8.27
18.
Western Ghat
17.69
Total
431.42
In order to establish changes in groundwater levels, Central Ground Water
Board has established a network of about 15,000 stations covering various
parts on the country. In addition to these, State Ground Water departments
are also monitoring the water levels in their respective States. The observations
for the year 1980-2000 indicate a decline of about 4 m during this period
covering almost all the States. In the capital city of Delhi, a decline of more
than 5 m has been reported. The overall decline in water table is due to
greater demand of water for irrigation, domestic and industrial uses as well
as decreasing groundwater recharge as a result of urbanization. As the pace
