NEW DELHI: The principal bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken a significant step to address the worsening groundwater depletion crisis in India by forming a high-level expert committee. It is expected to submit its report in the next four months.
The bench, which includes Justice Prakash Shrivastava (Chairperson), Dr A Senthil Vel (Expert Member), and Dr Afroz Ahmad (Expert Member), reviewed data submitted by the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) and various State and Union Territory governments. They found widespread over-exploitation of groundwater in multiple regions and inadequate enforcement of regulatory guidelines.
Data indicates that Punjab has the highest percentage of over-exploited units at 75.16%, followed by Haryana at 61.54%, NCT Delhi at 41.18%, Tamil Nadu at 33.87%, and Karnataka at 18.99%. Moreover, many states have not submitted their reports.
The NGT initiated a suo-motu case based on a media report that highlighted alarming predictions regarding groundwater levels in several regions, including the Indo-Gangetic basin and northwestern India, which may drop to critically low levels.
The tribunal reviewed compiled data, revealing that insufficient enforcement of regulatory guidelines has led to extensive over-exploitation of groundwater.
To address these critical issues, the tribunal has established a high-level committee comprising representatives from the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), Geological Survey of India (GSI), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), and IIT Roorkee, with the CGWA serving as the nodal agency. The committee has been directed to submit its report within three months.
Panel members
The committee comprises representatives from the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), Geological Survey of India (GSI), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), and IIT Roorkee, with the CGWA serving as the nodal agency. The committee has been directed to submit its report within three months.