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World Bank nod for Rs. 6,000 cr. groundwater recharge plan
Why it is in news?
- To address concerns about depleting groundwater reserves in India, the government has joined hands with the World Bank to execute a Rs. 6,000-crore scheme called the Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY).
Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY)
- The scheme is to be implemented over a period of five years from 2018-19 to 2022-23.
- It is yet to be cleared by the Cabinet.
- The Atal Bhujal Yojana aims to improve ground water management in priority areas in the country through community participation.
- The priority areas identified under the scheme fall in Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, which represent about 25% of the total number of over-exploited, critical and semi-critical blocks in terms of ground water in India.
Overexploitation
- India’s groundwater resources have been overexploited.
- According to a sample assessment in 2011, groundwater in 19 of India’s 71 districts — about 26% — were critical or exploited, meaning that nearly as much or more water was being pulled out than their reservoirs’ natural recharge ability.
- In another assessment in 2013, they included groundwater blocks in districts that had gone saline, and this percentage was up to 31%
Source
The Hindu