India 2018

Water Resources 525
of demonstrative schemes for artificial recharge and rainwater harvesting for
recharge augmentation, periodic assessment of ground water resources of the
country, etc. The Board also takes up special studies on various aspects of ground
water such as ground water depletion, sea water ingress, ground water
contamination, conjunctive use of surface and ground water, water balance,
etc.
Aquifer Mapping and Management Plan
Aquifers are natural rock formations which can store and economically yield
water. In XII Plan CGWB took up the National Project on Aquifer Management
(NAQUIM) to facilitate identification, delineation, characterization and effective
management of aquifers to ensure sustainability of ground water resources.
The project is proposed to span over XII and XIII Plan periods and it is proposed
to cover around 23.25 lakh sq. km mappable areas of the country. Major objectives
of the project are : (i) delineation of aquifers in 3D on 1:50,000 scale in priority
areas (over- exploited, critical and semi-critical categories of assessment units
as well as water quality and other problem/ vulnerable areas); (ii) detailed
characterization of aquifers including quality of ground water; and (iii)
formulation of aquifer management plans. The project also envisages a
participatory approach involving stakeholders at grassroots level for ground
water management at local levels.
The major activities envisaged under the project include compilation of
existing data, data gap analysis, generation of additional data for preparation
of aquifer map and formulation of aquifer management plans. Each activity
has a number of sub-activities and tasks which are being carried out as per
detail protocols for implementation.
Demonstrative Projects on Artificial Recharge to Groundwater & Rainwater
Harvesting
CGWB has implemented demonstrative projects on artificial recharge to ground
water and rainwater harvesting in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar,
Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir,
Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland,
Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telengana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal
and UT Chandigarh.
Central Ground Water Authority
Central Ground Water Board was constituted as Central Ground Water Authority
(CGWA) under sub-Section (3) of Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act,
1986 in 1997 for regulation and control of ground water management and
development in the country. As part of streamlining the regulatory function of
CGWA, district magistrates / deputy commissioners of revenue districts were
appointed as authorized officers for grant of permission for extraction of ground
water for drinking/domestic uses in notified areas. They have been advised to
process requests for grant of permission for extraction of ground water for
drinking/domestic purposes in notified areas as per guidelines issued by CGWA.