India’s First-ever Waterbody Survey Reveals the State of Encroachment on Waterbodies Across the Country

The Ministry of Jal Shakti released the report of the first-ever waterbodies survey in India in March 2023, which revealed there are over 24 lakh water bodies across the country. Water bodies primarily constitute ponds, tanks, reservoirs and lakes. According to experts, more than half of these waterbodies are privately owned.
The Census of Waterbodies aims to create a nationwide directory for all water bodies by accumulating information regarding all relevant factors such as size, condition, encroachment status, usage, capacity for storage, storage filling situation, and so on.

Number of Water Bodies Across the Country

The study revealed, that out of 24,24,540 water bodies that have been enumerated across the country, 97.1% i.e. 23,55,055, are located in rural areas, while only 2.9% i.e. 69,485 are in urban areas. About 59.5% of water bodies are classified as ponds, followed by tanks at 15.7%, reservoirs at 12.1, while only 0.9% are lakes. 9.3% of water bodies are also water conservation schemes, percolation tanks and check dams.
The report indicates that West Bengal has the highest number of water bodies at 7,47,480 which is 30.8% of the total water bodies, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 2,45,087 or 10.7%, Andhra Pradesh at 7.9% i.e. 1,90,777 water bodies.
West Bengal also has the most ponds and reservoirs,  Andhra Pradesh has the most tanks, Tamil Nadu has the most lakes, and Maharashtra is leading the way in water conservation schemes.

Ownership and Status of Encroachment

Encroached water bodies account for 1.6% of all listed water bodies. 95.4% of them are situated in rural regions, with the remainder in cities. "11.8% of encroached water bodies have over 75% area under encroachment, while 62.8% have under 25% area under encroachment," according to the study.
According to the research, private entities possess more than half of the water bodies, i.e. 55.2% or 13,38,735 of the water bodies, while public entities hold 44.8%, i.e. 10,85,805. Panchayats possess the greatest number of public water bodies, followed by State Irrigation / State Water Resources Departments. Individual owners/farmers hold most of the privately owned water bodies, followed by groups of persons along with other entities such as trusts or temples.
However, not all is lost in terms of encroachment. Water User Associations (WUAs) have been extremely helpful in avoiding encroachments since they are watchful and aware. "Out of the 13,64,349 water bodies that are not owned by individual owners, WUAs have been formed in the case of 3.1% (42,237) of the water bodies," according to the research.
Under the changing climatic circumstances, particularly as extreme weather events have turned into the new norm, encroached water bodies or even those withering for different causes are a matter of concern, which also includes privately owned water bodies.
According to V K Madhavan, CEO of Water Aid India, with access to piped water, individuals have lost the incentive to maintain or conserve water bodies. The experts also believe public awareness and community engagement in water body restoration and rehabilitation will be critical.