Latest news with #JalShakti
The Hindu
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Around 74% of 1,087 monitored wells in Karnataka showed rise in groundwater level: Minister
The Union Jal Shakti Ministry has said that 74% of the 1,087 monitored wells in Karnataka have registered a rise in groundwater level in a span of one decade. On July 24, Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Choudhary gave this information to Udupi-Chikkamagaluru Member of Parliament Kota Srinivas Poojary in response to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha on declining groundwater levels in Karnataka. The Minister said the Central Groundwater Board (CGWB) monitors groundwater levels throughout the country four times every year. The district-wise groundwater level data measured during post-monsoon 2024 (November) in Karnataka indicated around 96% of the measured wells have shown water levels in the range of 0-10 metres below ground level, indicating ease of access to groundwater. Decadal mean Mr. Choudhary said district-wise groundwater level data of November 2024 was compared with the decadal mean of November month of 10 years (2014-2023). The analysis indicated that around 74% of the wells monitored (1,087) have registered a rise in groundwater level. Of the 1,087 wells, 611 (56.21%) have shown 0-2 metre rise; 127 (11.68%) shown 2-4 metre, and 66 (6.07%) wells have shown more than 4 metre rise. On the other hand, 242 (22.6%) wells have recorded 0-2 metre fall in the level while 26 (2.39%) wells have recorded more than 4 metre fall in the level, the Minister said. 16.66 lakh water structures The Minister said the government is implementing Jal Shakti Abhiyan across India since 2019 for harvesting rainfall and taking up water conservation activities. JSA was an umbrella campaign under which various groundwater recharge and conservation work was being undertaken in convergence with various Central and State schemes. 'As per the information available on JSA dashboard, a total of around 16.66 lakh water conservation and artificial recharge structures have been constructed or renovated in Karnataka since 2021. Additionally, 31 Jal Shakti Kendras have been set up at each district for dissemination of water-related knowledge and consultation by citizens,' he said. Karnataka is one among seven states where Atal Bhujal Yojna, a community-led scheme for participatory groundwater management on demand-side management, is being implemented in 80 water-stressed districts. As many as 4,056 Amrit Sarovars were either constructed or rejuvenated in Karnataka under Mission Amrit Sarovar that aims to rejuvenate at least 75 water bodies in each district. The Central and the State governments have spent ₹9,148 crore on water conservation, groundwater recharge and rainwater water harvesting activities from April 2021 to July 2025, he added.
Indian Express
4 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Gujarat CM inaugurates projects worth Rs 73 crore; hails Surat for acing Super Swachh League
To mark Urban Development Year 2025, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel inaugurated various projects worth an estimated Rs 73.01 crore in different zones and laid the foundation stone for projects worth around Rs 362.45 crore, in Surat on Saturday. With Surat city acing the Super Swachh League as the cleanest city in India, CM Patel congratulated the sanitation workers. On the occasion, Union Minister for Jal Shakti C R Paatil said, 'Surat city is marching ahead and is a source of inspiration for other cities in the country.' Congratulating the sanitation workers along with officers and employees of the civic body, he appealed to the citizens to continuously maintain the achievements made in the field of cleanliness. The Union minister said, 'Surat has done good work in rainwater harvesting with the people of the community and Rajasthani businessmen playing an important role in Jan Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB). Under the rainwater harvesting initiative, a total of 32 lakh structures have been constructed across 33 states and 611 districts in India. Under Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari-2, which started on June 1 this year, Gujarat stood in first position, while in Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari-1, it clinched the 6th position. In the JSJB-1, Banaskantha, which falls within the dark zone and is a dry area, has worked exponentially well. With the help of Banas Dairy Chairman Shanker Chaudhary, over 27,000 structures for Jal Sanchay were made in the district. Farmers paid 50%, and the remaining one was paid by Banas dairy in JSJB-1.' CM Patel has allocated a budget of Rs 50 lakh to the MLAs to accelerate the water conservation campaign launched under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Paatil said. Addressing the gathering, CM Patel said, 'Suraksha and salamati paya ni pehli sharat chhe (Safety and security are the first basic conditions). PM Modi has given top priority to the country's security and the safety of its people.' He said, 'Under the leadership of PM Modi, the Indian Army has achieved resounding success in terms of surgical strikes, air strikes and recently, Operation Sindoor.' Keeping in mind the vision of PM Modi's Developed India-2047, he said, 'To raise the standards of ease of living in Surat, the foundation stone and inauguration of different development projects were done in Surat today. SMC is constantly striving to provide excellent infrastructure and basic facilities to the citizens. As part of the development works, tree plantation has been undertaken under the Ek Ped Ma Ke Naam Abhiyan to preserve the environment. The Catch the Rain Abhiyan has been undertaken to prevent water problems in the future.' He said, 'Surat has the longest BRTS corridor in India, measuring 108 km. Under this, it is the first city in India to operate 100% electric buses. The participation of every citizen of Gujarat is necessary to develop Surat as a growth hub and become a world-class city.' The programme also included the launch of the logo for the Surat Gender and Inclusion Lab under the Sustainable Urban Mobility — Air Quality, Climate Action, and Accessibility (SUM-ACA) project with GIZ-Germany. Besides, three digital tools – E-Bus Planning and Optimization Tool, E-Bus Scheduling Tool, and Bus Key Performance Indicator Dashboard Tool – were launched. They have been developed in collaboration with GIZ-Germany to make the public transport service of Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) effective. At the event, two films narrating the development and growth story of Surat were screened. At the event, CM Patel also watched a performance put together by the students of the AI (Artificial Intelligence) Lab at Suman School, which the Surat civic body runs. Besides, he conducted a computerised draw system of 1,494 houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna at Bhestan, Palanpur and Bhesan, from Sanjiv Kumar Auditorium in Surat.
NDTV
5 days ago
- General
- NDTV
Over 80% of Rural Indian Families Now Have Access to Piped Drinking Water
New Delhi: Marking a significant achievement in rural water infrastructure, the Centre's flagship initiative, Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) - Har Ghar Jal, has reached a key milestone. As per data provided by States and Union Territories up to July 22, 2025, over 80.94% of rural households in India now have access to piped drinking water. According to V Somanna, Minister of State for Jal Shakti in Parliament, when the mission was launched in August 2019, only 3.23 crore - or 16.7% - households had tap water connections. Since then, an additional 12.44 crore households have been connected, bringing the total to 15.67 crore rural households out of 19.36 crore nationwide. Originally planned for the 2019-2024 period, the Jal Jeevan Mission - which is implemented in partnership with states and UTs - has been extended until 2028, following an announcement in the 2025-26 Union Budget. The mission has also received increased funding, and a new goal has been established to achieve 100% household tap water coverage within three years. Some States Get Full Marks So far, 11 States and UTs have achieved 100% tap water coverage for rural households: Goa, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadra & Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu, Haryana, Telangana, Puducherry, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh Other states that have shown commendable progress include Uttarakhand, with 97.6% coverage, Ladakh, with 96.88% and Bihar with 95.7%. Seven states now have over 90% of their rural households connected to tap water. Certain states are still experiencing delayed progress. As of July 21, 2025, only 54.66% of rural households in Kerala had access to tap water connections. States like Rajasthan, West Bengal and Jharkhand are also progressing slowly in terms of rural tap water coverage under the initiative. But states like Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh made significant progress under the scheme. At the inception of the Mission, only 13.53 lakh rural households in Madhya Pradesh had tap water connections. By July 21, 2025, 78.56 lakh households had water connections. Similarly, Uttar Pradesh had 5.16 lakh rural households in 2019 which had risen to 2.4 crore by July 23 this year. According to the Jal Shakti Ministry, Rs 3,881.88 crore from central government allocations is available under JJM. The highest allocations - Rs 970 crore and Rs 688 crore - are for Maharashtra and Karnataka. These funds will continue to support infrastructure development, pipeline expansion, and water quality monitoring in rural areas of India.
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Banakacherla Link Project goes against Bachawat Tribunal Award: Telangana
HYDERABAD: The Telangana government informed the Ministry of Jal Shakti that the Polavaram-Banakacherla Link Project (PBLP) is against the Bachawat Tribunal Award. In a letter to the secretary of Jal Shakti, Telangana Irrigation principal secretary Rahul Bojja said on Thursday: 'The present proposal of PBLP diverting Godavari Water to other Basins via Krishna Basin without supplementing water to Krishna Basin areas contravenes KWDT-I Award'. The Telangana government sent its comments on the pre-feasibility report (PFR) on Andhra Pradesh's PBLP. The main purpose of this diversion project is to stabilise the existing projects in the Pennar basin spanning the Rayalaseema region, and western parts of Prakasam and Nellore districts that depend on inflows into Srisailam reservoir on the flood based project. Stabilisation to above projects is considered at 50% of its water requirements. New Irrigation potential is about three lakh hectares including taking up Nagarjunasagar Project (NSP) Phase-II, new command between Bollapalle reservoir and Banakacherla Regulator, Orvakallu Lift Irrigation Scheme (for western parts of Kurnool district), Gandikota LIS, Gandikota-CBR Lifts 1 to 6, Somasila high level canal LIS Ph-1, GNSS lifts and Badvel lifts on Telugu Ganga Project (TGP). The share of the new ayacut is 60 tmcft. The stabilisation ayacut of 9.14 lakh hectares and as well as the contemplated ayacut of three lakh hectares do not come under Godavari river basin and it entirely covers the regions of Krishna/Pennar basin which needs to be relooked, the Telangana letter said. As per the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal Award (GWDTA), there is no clause for allocating the floodwater among the basin States.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- General
- Hindustan Times
Ganga water quality remained within safe limits after Maha Kumbh 2025: Centre
The water quality of the Ganga river remained within the permissible limits for primary bathing standards both during and after the Maha Kumbh 2025 in Prayagraj, the Jal Shakti ministry said on Thursday. An aerial view of devotees taking a holy dip at Sangam during the Maha Kumbh Mela festival in Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh.(File) The monitoring conducted at eight key locations by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), including Shringverpur Ghat, Sangam, and Deeha Ghat, showed that parameters like pH, Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), and Faecal Coliform (FC) were well within the acceptable limits throughout religious festivities, the Minister of State for Jal Shakti Raj Bhushan Choudhary said in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha on Thursday. The data was collected between January 12 and February 20, 2025, covering the Amrit Snan days and adjoining periods. The CPCB increased its monitoring from five to eight locations midway through the period to ensure broader coverage. According to the Ministry of Jal Shakti, the positive results reflect the effectiveness of the sanitation and wastewater management systems implemented during the Mela. The sanitation plan developed by the Prayagraj Mela Authority included temporary drainage systems spanning 250 km, the use of bioremediation ponds, and the installation of temporary sewage and faecal sludge treatment plants. After the event, these systems were dismantled and stored for future use, while disinfection measures ensured hygienic site closure, Choudhary said. The ministry also stated that under the Namami Gange Programme, 502 projects have been sanctioned with 323 completed, 150 under implementation, and 29 in the tendering stage. The Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), which conducted a third-party appraisal, found that the programme has made substantial progress in reducing pollution, improving river flow, and engaging local communities, the MoS said.
