First Census of Water Bodies Census in India

First Census of Water Bodies Census in India

Tags:      Gig Economy     Economy     WTO     WTO Public Stockholding     MSP     Economic Growth     Masala Bond     Environmental Performance Index     Forecast of Economic Growth     Functions of the Finance Commission

The Jal Shakti ministry has issued the report of India's first water bodies census which gives a complete database of the country's ponds, tanks, lakes, and reservoirs. The census of 2018-19 took into account about 2.42 million water-bodies all across the nation.

Water Bodies - are constructions that collect water from glacier melts, streams, springs, rain, or drainage from household or other locations. Water storage from a stream, nala, or river is also included. The oceans, streams and waterfalls, swimming pools, closed water tanks built by people, factories, and temporary water bodies are not included in the definition.

Why was a water census required - The census was carried out by the Jal Shakti ministry in order for the findings to inform policy on wise water usage and conservation. The census was held concurrently with the sixth minor irrigation census. All the man-made and the natural water-bodies bounded on the sides with a few or, no masonry operations and are utilized for water storage to irrigate (such as recharge of ground water, pisciculture, drinking and industrial and so on) make the qualification.

Important findings

• The census counted 2.42 million bodies of water, with 97.1% (2.35 million) in rural regions and 2.9% (69,485) in urban areas.

• The census defines 59.5% (1.44 million) of the body of water bodies as 'ponds'—tanks (15.7%), reservoirs (12.1%), water-management schemes, percolating tanks & check dams (9.3%), lakes (0.9%), and others (2.5%).

• Of these bodies of water, 83.7% (2.03 million) are 'in use'; the remainder are inoperable due to drying, silting, building, and other factors.

• In accordance with the census, private entities control 55.2% (1.33 million) of the land, while governmental entities possess 44.8%. According to data collected on water body encroachment, just 1.6% of all listed bodies have experienced encroachment. 95.4% of the encroached bodies are in rural regions, with the remaining 4.6% in metropolitan areas.

The current state of India's water resources

• India has 18% of the world's population yet just 4% of the world's fresh water resources.

• Water supplies in the nation have grown exceedingly contaminated, with 70% of its surface water deemed "unfit" for human consumption.

• A solid and trustworthy dataset on water bodies is required for successful planning and policy formulation for pollution control and the advancement of the preservation and rehabilitation of water bodies.

• According to the government, per capita water availability in the country is expected to shrink from 1,486 cubic metres in 2021 to 1,367 cubic metres by 2031, citing statistics from a report published by the Central Water Commission (CWC). According to the 1951 census, per capita available was in excess of 5,000 cubic metres.

Regional differences - Maharashtra leads all states and UTs in the construction of bodies of water within conservation of water initiatives. The census states that West Bengal owns the maximum ponds and reservoirs while Andhra Pradesh is blessed with most tanks and Tamil Nadu with most lakes. Maharashtra has 97,062 water bodies, 96,343 of which are in rural regions and just 719 in urban areas. According to the census, about 93% of the bodies of water in Maharashtra are check dams, demonstrating that the rural section of the state is dependent on water-conservation projects far more than nearly every other state in the country. The district of South 24 Parganas in West Bengal is said to have the most water bodies (0.35 million) in the country. It is closely followed by Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh (50,537) and Howrah in West Bengal (37,301). The majority of privately held water bodies are controlled by people or cultivators, then followed by a consortium of persons and other independent bodies.

• India has 18% of the world's population yet just 4% of the world's fresh water resources.