MANGALURU: Karnataka has reported 79,440 water conservation and recharge works under the Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari (JSJB 2.0) initiative as of March 2026. Among the districts, Kolar leads with 18,422 completed works, followed by Tumakuru (11,014) and Chikkaballapura (9,321), indicating a strong push in water-stressed regions. At the other end, Bengaluru Urban has reported zero works, Raichur just 18 works, Mandya (94) and Udupi (74).
The initiative focuses on intensifying community action and mobilisation to build low-cost rainwater harvesting structures in low cost and saturation mode. The JSJB initiative leverages community funds, individual donations, Corporate Social Responsibility funds and others for construction of low-cost structures like borewells, recharge shafts, recharge pits, using locally available material, to harvest rainwater, to boost ground water level and provide local tailor-made solution to water issues.
The Union Ministry of Jal Shakti presented a detailed snapshot of water conservation efforts in Karnataka in response to a question raised by Dr D Veerendra Heggade in the Rajya Sabha, recently.
Under watershed development efforts linked to PMKSY 2.0, as many as 2,174 water harvesting structures (WHS) have been created or rejuvenated in Karnataka, contributing to 6,397 hectares of additional protective irrigation.
The state has also made notable progress under micro-irrigation through the Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme. Over the last decade, 108.07 lakh hectares have been brought under micro-irrigation, with yearly expansion peaking at 11.73 lakh ha in 2019-20 and maintaining steady coverage above 10 lakh hectares in recent years. In just the last three years (2023-24 to 2025-26 so far), 29.57 lakh hectares have been covered.
The response said Karnataka has utilised approximately Rs 4,897.89 crore across schemes such as PDMC, RIDF, and Atal Bhujal Yojana since 2015-16 to drive water efficiency. These investments have directly benefited about 22.24 lakh farmers, covering 22.62 lakh hectares with micro-irrigation systems across all districts.
On urban water management, under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0, Karnataka has undertaken one waterbody rejuvenation project worth Rs 29.83 crore. Additionally, 180 green space and park projects have been taken up, covering 347.78 acres of permeable area, aiding groundwater recharge and urban sustainability.
Aquifer mapping has also progressed significantly, with 1.91 lakh sq km mapped in the state under the NAQUIM programme. Recent studies alone covered over 2,700 sq km across 2023-25.