Sustainable Groundwater Governance in Haryana: Integrating Traditional Knowledge, Policy Interventions and Urban Water Management
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31305/ijmds.v15n09.006Keywords:
Groundwater Governance, Groundwater Recharge, Haryana, Sustainability, Urban Water Management, Water PolicyAbstract
Groundwater is a critical resource supporting agricultural productivity, domestic water supply and economic development in India. But, rising reliance on groundwater has led to serious concerns about its sustainability over the long term. Haryana, which was a major contributor during Green Revolution in India is now facing heavy groundwater stress due to the combination of high farming intensity, rapid urbanisation, growing population and impacts of climate changes. This review paper discusses the issues of sustainable groundwater governance in Haryana by analysing research and policy works that were published from 2015 to 2025. This study looks at the background of India's groundwater crisis and discusses the main causes and effects of groundwater shortage in the state. Traditional systems to manage community water sources such as Johads has been discussed as to how they can be used for present-day groundwater recharge and conservation. This paper further analyses recent policies, institutional changes and urban water management strategies that are being developed to make groundwater usage more sustainable. The study reveals that groundwater depletion is an intricate socio-ecological problem and through a combination of technological interventions and regulatory measures alone, it is not possible to address it. Sustainable groundwater governance necessitates the use of a cohesive and flexible structure that blends in traditional ecological understanding, community involvement, scientific principles, strong institutions, demand management as well as water-sensitive urban planning. This kind of approach can strengthen resilience and help make sustainable management of groundwater resources in Haryana more effective in the face of growing environmental and developmental pressures.
References
[1] Abhay, R. K. (2024). Evaluating the role of indigenous methods of rainwater harvesting for water sustainability of local ecosystems in India. In Sacred Landscapes, Indigenous Knowledge, and Ethno-culture in Natural Resource Management: Understanding Multiple Perspectives of Nature Conservation (pp. 121-134). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-4206-6_6
[2] Ajith, V., Reshma, A. S., Mohan, R., & Ramesh, M. V. (2022). Empowering communities in addressing drinking water challenges using a systematic, participatory and adaptive approach and sustainable PPP model. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 185, 121970. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.121970
[3] Chaudhuri, S., & Roy, M. (2016). Reflections on groundwater quality and urban-rural disparity in drinking water sources in the state of Haryana, India. IJSRD-International Journal for Scientific Research and Development, 4(4), 837-843.
[4] Davis, K. F., Chhatre, A., Rao, N. D., Singh, D., Ghosh-Jerath, S., Mridul, A., & DeFries, R. (2019). Assessing the sustainability of post-Green Revolution cereals in India. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(50), 25034-25041. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1910935116
[5] Food and Agriculture Organization. (2022). The state of the world's land and water resources for food and agriculture: Systems at breaking point. FAO.
[6] Foster, S. (2022). The key role for groundwater in urban water-supply security. Journal of Water and Climate Change, 13(10), 3566-3577. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2166/wcc.2022.174
[7] Gupta, R., & Misra, A. K. (2019). Drinking water quality problem in Haryana, India: prediction of human health risks, economic burden and assessment of possible intervention options. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 21(5), 2097-2111. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-018-0125-z
[8] Hussain, S., Hussain, E., Saxena, P., Sharma, A., Thathola, P., & Sonwani, S. (2024). Navigating the impact of climate change in India: a perspective on climate action (SDG13) and sustainable cities and communities (SDG11). Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, 5, 1308684. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/frsc.2023.1308684
[9] Kar, G., Singh, A. K., & Datta, D. (2024). Potential impact of climate change on water productivity and water footprints of rice and wheat in the Indo-Gangetic plains of India. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 196(11), 1101. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-024-13287-6
[10] Khara, D. S. (2023). Groundwater governance in India: A legal and institutional perspective. Indian Journal of Public Administration, 69(1), 204-220. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00195561221128618
[11] Mukherjee, A. (2018). Overview of the groundwater of South Asia. In Groundwater of South Asia (pp. 3-20). Singapore: Springer Singapore. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-3889-1_1
[12] Nagal, B., Prabhakar, A. K., & Pal, M. (2026). Evaluation of groundwater storage variations over Haryana state using GRACE data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 47(2), 670-683. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2025.2592907
[13] Pandey, V. V., Singh, K. M., Ahmad, N., & Srivastava, S. K. (2022). Challenges and issues of groundwater management in India. Indian Academy of Sciences. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs/v123/i7/856-864
[14] Parakh, D., & Chaudhuri, S. (2022). Groundwater regulation bills in Haryana–A call for groundwater conservation and management for sustainable irrigation supply services–Opportunities and challenges. Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper, 28(1), 147-164. DOI: https://doi.org/10.53550/EEC.2022.v28i01.020
[15] Ravish, S., Setia, B., & Deswal, S. (2021). Groundwater quality in urban and rural areas of north-eastern Haryana (India): a review. ISH Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 27(2), 224-234. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09715010.2018.1531070
[16] Rosencranz, A., Puthucherril, T. G., Tripathi, S., & Gupta, S. (2022). Groundwater management in India's Punjab and Haryana: a case of too little and too late?. Journal of Energy & Natural Resources Law, 40(2), 225-250. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02646811.2021.1956181
[17] Shah, T. (2020). Climate change and groundwater: India’s opportunities for mitigation and adaptation. In Water resources policies in South Asia (pp. 213-243). Routledge India. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780367818487-14
[18] Sharma, L., & Verma, G. (2023). Identify the Need for Rainwater Harvesting System (RWHS) in India Using Rainfall Data Analysis. In International Conference on Emerging Trends and Technologies on Intelligent Systems (pp. 289-299). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-3963-3_23
[19] Shiferaw, B. A., Reddy, V. R., & Sharma, B. (2024). Groundwater governance under climate change in India: lessons based on evaluation of World Bank interventions. International Journal of Water Resources Development, 40(3), 401-424. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/07900627.2023.2207694
[20] Singh, A. K., & Narain, V. (2019). Fluid institutions: Commons in transition in the periurban interface. Society & Natural Resources, 32(5), 606-615. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2018.1559380
[21] Singh, O., Kasana, A., Singh, K. P., & Sarangi, A. (2020). Analysis of drivers of trends in groundwater levels under rice–wheat ecosystem in Haryana, India. Natural Resources Research, 29(2), 1101-1126. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-019-09477-6
[22] Sugam, R., Gupta, B., & Deka, D. (2018). Dying traditional water bodies in India struggling to survive against unplanned development. Journal of Water Resource and Protection, 10(06), 539-558. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/jwarp.2018.106030
[23] United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2022). The United Nations world water development report 2022: Groundwater—Making the invisible visible. UNESCO.
