In first-ever waterbody census, Bengal tops list of states with most ponds and reservoirs
- The Union Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the first-ever census of water bodies
- It is in convergence with the Sixth Minor Irrigation Census (reference year 2017-18)
About Water bodies census
- It is under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme – “Irrigation Census”.
- Its objective is to develop a national database for all water bodies
- It will be done by collecting information on all important aspects including their size, condition, status of encroachments, use, storage capacity, etc.
Key Highlights of the Census
- 24,24,540 water bodies have been enumerated in the country, out of which 97.1% (23,55,055) are in rural areas and only 2.9% (69,485) in urban areas.
- The data of water bodies up to the fifth minor irrigation census is limited to village level whereas the first census of water bodies covers all types of water bodies in both rural and urban areas.
- 59.5% (14,42,993) of water bodies are ponds, followed by tanks (15.7% i.e., 3,81,805), reservoirs (12.1% i.e., 2,92,280), water conservation schemes/percolation tanks/check dams (9.3% i.e. 2,26,217), lakes (0.9% i.e. 22,361) and others (2.5% i.e. 58,884).
Performance of states in census
- West Bengal accounts for the most (7.47 lakh) and Sikkim the least (134) number of water bodies.
- West Bengal has the highest number of ponds and reservoirs, whereas Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of tanks.
- Tamil Nadu has the highest number of lakes and Maharashtra is the leading state with water conservation schemes.
- West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas has been ranked as the top district having the highest (3.55 lakh) number of water bodies across the country.
- The census also collected data on encroachment of water bodies for the first time.
- 1.6% water bodies are reported to be encroached, out of which 95.4% are in rural areas and remaining 4.6% in urban areas.
Prelims take away
- Irrigation Census
- Water bodies census