Network of sensors to monitor groundwater quality

Contact Counsellor

Last Updated25/04/2023

The Jal Shakti Ministry is working on an ambitious plan to deploy a vast network of groundwater sensors
It will continuously relay information on groundwater levels and the degree of contamination down to the taluk level.
Currently, such information is only measured a handful of times a year and communicated via reports of the Central Groundwater Board.

The establishment of such a network will continuously measure groundwater quality
It will feed it into a centralised network such as that of the National Water Informatics Centre
It will be made available for monitoring
It would make groundwater visible much the same way as air quality and meteorological variables-air pressure, moisture, precipitation are now
It will potentially provide groundwater forecasts to farmers
It would be useful for sowing, and updated advisories can influence groundwater extraction policies by States

The Central Groundwater Board currently relies on a network of about 26,000 groundwater observation wells
It requires technicians to manually measure the state of groundwater in a region.
Under the new initiative, around 16,000 to 17,000 digital water level recorders will be connected to piezometers in the wells.
Piezometers measure groundwater levels, the recorders will transmit the information digitally.
The CGWB is in charge of the National Aquifer Mapping Programme (NAQUIM)
It has mapped the country’s aquifers at a resolution of 1:5000

In the latest GroundWater Resource Assessment-2022, the total annual groundwater recharge in the country has been assessed as 437.60 billion cubic metres (BCM).
The annual extractable groundwater resource has been assessed as 398.08 bcm, with actual extraction of 239.16 bcm.
The average stage of groundwater extraction for the country as a whole works out to be about 60.08%.
Anything above 70% is considered “critical” though there are regions in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan with groundwater blocks with over 100% extraction.
Reports over the years suggest that 85% of rural India uses groundwater for drinking and domestic purposes.
In cities with a population of over 10 lakh, about 40% have seen water levels in monitored wells either stay stable or drop.

It is mostly “geogenic” (natural) and hasn’t significantly changed over the years.
However, nitrate contamination has been observed.
It is a result of the use of nitrogenous fertilisers
Sections of nearly 409 districts have been confirmed with fluoride contamination and parts of 209 districts have noted arsenic contamination.
Those regions and States known to have groundwater contamination will be monitored more intensely for action by States