Interconnected Disaster Risks Report 2023
Context:
- According to a recent United Nations University study, 27 of the 31 aquifers in the nation are running out of water more quickly than they can be refilled.
Further information about the report:
- Environmental tipping points are crucial distances beyond which abrupt and frequently irreversible changes take place in Earth’s systems, resulting in significant and occasionally disastrous changes to ecosystems, climate patterns, and the environment as a whole.
Warnings from several committees regarding India’s use of groundwater:
- There is a lack of “understanding of river systems or their interconnections with the health of catchment areas or groundwater,” according to the Mihir Shah Committee’s 2016 report.
- Numerous other reports, such as those issued on behalf of the Central Water Commission and Niti Aayog, have highlighted the deplorable condition of the nation’s aquifers.
The government’s groundwater initiatives:
- In 78 districts with limited water resources, the Union Jal Shakti Ministry will launch the Atal Bhujal Yojana.
- The initiative, which got underway in 2020, intends to change community behaviour in seven states. According to ministry data, the amount of groundwater extracted in 2020 for domestic, industrial, and irrigation purposes decreased by roughly 6 billion cubic metres in 2022.
- The Centre has been advocating for the use of effective watering techniques and less thirsty crops, such as millet.
India’s groundwater crisis has several causes:
- More groundwater is pumped worldwide by India than by China and the United States combined. According to the Central Ground Water Board, groundwater supplies more than 70% of the water used.
- The application of borewells and tubewells in agriculture was highlighted.
- Institutional innovation in water use is lacking. (The Committee of Mihir Shah)
- More groundwater extraction is being encouraged by power subsidies. (The UN report states that 78% of the state’s wells are overexploited).
- Connection between the climate crisis and groundwater extraction.
- The issue might get worse in the southwest of the nation, where recharge is already restricted by hard rock aquifers.
- Higher temperatures might prevent as much moisture from penetrating the soil and recharging groundwater supplies.
In summary:
- The first step in encouraging people to manage aquifers responsibly may be to use technologies that let them keep an eye on the water level in their borewells. These might be the triggers that cause the changes in behaviour.
