Assessment was carried out annually since 2022 by Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and States/UTs. 

Key Highlights 

• Recharge: Total annual groundwater recharge has decreased marginally from 2023 (449BCM) to 446.90 Billion Cubic Meter (BCM). Rainfall contributes to nearly 61 % in this.
• Extraction: Annual extractable groundwater resources have decreased marginally from 407.21 to 406.19 BCM.
  • Overall stage of groundwater extraction has marginally increased from 59.21 % to 60.47 %.
• Categories: 
  • Assessment units under Safe Category have increasedmarginally from 2023 (73%) to 73.4 % in 2024.
  • 3.05 % assessment units are Critical.
  • 11.1% assessment units are Over-exploited.
    • Concentration of Over-exploited units: North West (Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Western UP); West (Rajasthan, Gujarat); South (Karnataka, TN, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh).
    • Overexploited: Groundwater extraction exceeding annually replenishable ground water recharge.
    • Critical: Groundwater extraction is between 90-100 % of annual extractable resources available.
    • Safe: Groundwater extraction is less than 70%.

Factors behind Groundwater Depletion

• Irrigation: Excessive groundwater use for irrigation (>60%), poor irrigation practices like flood irrigation, and cultivation of water intensive crops like rice etc.
• Recharge: Decreasing groundwater recharge due to loss of vegetation, spatial and temporal variation in rainfall etc.
• Climate change: Erratic rainfall pattern impacting groundwater recharge.