Environment › Pollution
हिन्दी — Read in HindiGroundwater and water conservation
Groundwater and water conservation: how the water drawn is measured against what is recharged, the regulation of extraction, recharge and rainwater harvesting, and water policy. Prelims has asked about the Central Ground Water Authority and which body was constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
UPSC has asked
- Prelims 2022: the body constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
- Prelims 2020: the Central Ground Water Authority and groundwater irrigation
Showing 3 of 5 subjects, those that changed from 16 to 31 July 2026.Show all
Atal Bhujal Yojana
Copy link to Atal Bhujal YojanaPrelims and Mains
Atal Bhujal Yojana was a central scheme for community led groundwater management in water stressed blocks of seven States, in which every gram panchayat prepared a water budget and a water security plan.
What changed
30 Jul 2026New subject
- The scheme closed on 15 October 2025 and will not continue as a central scheme. The government calls it a completed pilot for States to replicate.
- It covered 8,203 water stressed gram panchayats in 229 blocks across seven States, and groundwater levels improved in 180 of those blocks.
- About 9.7 lakh hectares came under efficient water use.
Mains: it is the evidence that community water budgeting on the demand side can lift water tables.
PIB, 30 Jul 2026: Implementation and Impact of Atal Bhujal Yojana (opens in a new tab)
Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0
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The Jal Jeevan Mission is the central scheme for a functional tap water connection to every rural household, at 55 litres a person a day of water meeting the Bureau of Indian Standards specification IS 10500.
What changed
27 Jul 2026New subject
- The Cabinet has extended the mission to December 2028 and raised the total outlay from ₹3.60 lakh crore to ₹8.69 lakh crore.
- As on 18 July 2026 about 82 per cent of rural households had tap water, against about 17 per cent in August 2019.
PIB, 27 Jul 2026: 15.89 Crore Rural Households Connected to Functional Household Tap Connections Under JJM (opens in a new tab) · PIB, 30 Jul 2026: WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT UNDER JAL JEEVAN MISSION (opens in a new tab)
Non revenue water
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Non revenue water is water put into a supply network and lost to leaks, theft or unbilled use before it earns the utility anything, and Indian cities lose more than a third of what they produce this way.
What changed
28 Jul 2026New subjectalso in news
- Urban water utilities lose more than 30 per cent of the water they produce before it is billed, and only about 27 per cent of sewage is treated.