Dynamic Groundwater Resources Assessment Report 2025
Why in news?
The Dynamic Groundwater Resources Assessment Report 2025 for India has been released by the Ministry of Jal Shakti/CGWB, with national‑level and state‑wise data now publicly available.
About the 2025 report
- The report is the latest annual assessment of India’s dynamic groundwater resources, prepared jointly by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and States/UTs using the IN-GRES GIS-based platform.​
- It provides estimates of annual groundwater recharge, extractable resources, extraction, stage of extraction, and category (safe/semi‑critical/critical/over‑exploited/saline) for 6,746 assessment units (blocks/mandals/talukas).​
Key national‑level findings (2025)
- Total Annual Ground Water Recharge: 448.52 Billion Cubic Metres (BCM), marginally higher than about 446.9 BCM reported for 2024.​
- Annual Extractable Ground Water Resources: 407.75 BCM, slightly up from around 406.19 BCM in 2024.​
- Total Annual Ground Water Extraction: 247.22 BCM, giving a stage of groundwater extraction of 60.63% for the country.​
Category‑wise status of assessment units
- Of the 6,746 assessment units: about 73.4% are assessed as safe, 10.5% semi‑critical, 3.05% critical, 11.1% over‑exploited, and 1.8% saline.​
- Over‑exploited units are concentrated mainly in:
- North‑West: Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Western Uttar Pradesh
- West: Rajasthan, parts of Gujarat
- South: parts of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh.
Challenges & Risks
- Regional Over-Exploitation: Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and parts of Tamil Nadu continue to face severe groundwater stress.
- Agricultural Dependence: Irrigation remains the largest consumer, making groundwater vulnerable to unsustainable farming practices.
- Climate Variability: Erratic rainfall patterns affect recharge rates, especially in semi-arid regions.
- Salinity Issues: Coastal and arid zones show rising saline groundwater pockets, impacting drinking water quality.
Actionable Insights
- Promote Water-Efficient Agriculture: Encourage crop diversification and micro-irrigation.
- Strengthen Recharge Structures: Rainwater harvesting and aquifer recharge projects must be scaled up.
- Policy Interventions: Groundwater regulation in over-exploited zones should be enforced more strictly.
- Community Participation: Local water user associations can help monitor and manage extraction sustainably.
Download Pdf
