Water Governance in India, Current Crisis and Solutions

Understand India’s water governance system, major water crisis issues, and practical solutions to ensure sustainable and efficient water management.

Table of Contents

Context: As groundwater depletion reaches critical levels and climate change alters monsoon patterns, a recent analysis proposes a shift in how India manages its most vital resource.

Current Crisis of Water Governance in India

Supply-Demand Mismatch: Despite being home to 18% of the world’s population, India possesses only 4% of its freshwater resources.
- Per capita availability dropped from 1,816 cubic metres in 2001 to roughly 1,486 in 2021.
Groundwater Over-extraction: India is the world’s largest user of groundwater, extracting more than the US and China combined.
Agriculture Bias: Nearly 90% of freshwater is consumed by agriculture, primarily driven by power subsidies for “water-guzzling” crops like paddy and sugarcane in water-stressed regions.
Pollution: Over 70% of surface water is unfit for consumption, leading to a massive public health burden.

Water Governance in India

Article 21 of the Constitution: Right to clean drinking water.
Water has been deemed a fundamental resource, and the Centre and States have been tasked to make Water Governance Policies to distribute water among people.

Strategic Pillars for Reimagining Solutions of India’s Water Governance

	Problem	Solution
Management of “Green Water” (Soil Moisture)	Traditional policy focuses almost exclusively on Blue Water (rivers, lakes, aquifers).	Launch a National Green Water Mission to promote regenerative practices like mulching, no-till farming, and cover cropping.
Correcting Agricultural Distortions	1.Agriculture consumes 90% of India’s water, but its Crop Water Productivity (0.52/m3) is only one-third of China’s. 2. Procurement and fertilizer subsidies are currently locked into water-intensive rice and wheat, draining both aquifers and the exchequer.	Shifting just 3.6 million hectares from rice to millets and pulses could save 29 billion cubic meters of water annually (1/5th of India’s household use). This delivers better nutrition, environmental relief, and fiscal savings.
National Circular Water Economy Mission	Currently, only 28% of urban wastewater is treated, and reuse is negligible.	Transition from a “disposal mindset” to a “recovery mindset” through city-specific reuse targets and public-private partnerships (PPP) for sludge management.
“Sponge Cities” vs. Concrete Sinks	Urbanization has increased India’s built-up area by 33% since 2005, creating impervious surfaces that block recharge and magnify floods.	1.Blue-Green Infrastructure: Integrating wetlands, urban forests, and permeable surfaces into city design to absorb stormwater (e.g., the Yamuna Biodiversity Park model). Swachh Bharat 3.0: A proposed focus on peri-urban areas to decentralize waste treatment and prevent pollution at the source before it enters river systems.
Governance Reform and Digital Accounting	1. The current legal regime is fragmented and outdated. 2. Water management in India is often “blind” due to a lack of real-time data.	1. Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): Leveraging India’s tech stack for real-time water accounting and bulk water trading. 2. Tariff Reform: Shifting toward cost recovery for those who can pay, while providing direct subsidies for the vulnerable. Currently, the poor often pay high rates to unregulated “tanker mafias,” while official tariffs fail to cover service costs.

Constitutional Provisions for Water Governance in India

Water: Union List vs State List

Union List

State List

Article 246 grants the Central government the exclusive power to make laws on the following subjects under List I of the Seventh Schedule

Decide on shipping and navigation on inland and tidal (sea) waterways and on national waterways for vessels.
Regulate the training and education of mercantile marines by states and other agencies.
Decide on goods and passengers by sea or national waterways via mechanically propelled vessels.
Regulate and develop interstate rivers and river valleys.
Decide on fishing and fisheries beyond territorial waters.

States are Empowered to:

Develop roads, bridges, ferries, municipal tramways, ropeways and other means of communication on inland waterways in the State
Decide on water supply, irrigation and canals, drainage and embankments, water storage and water power
Taxes on goods and passengers carried by road or on inland waterways
Decide on shipping and navigation on inland waterways via mechanically propelled vessels and carriage of passengers and goods on such waters

State Vs Union: States like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka have complained of inadequate disbursal of funds by the Centre, claiming that the delay has caused stalling of important dam projects.
Inter-State Dispute: Development of water supplies, canals and riverbanks is an area of conflict between States. India’s major river disputes:
- Cauvery dispute (Karnataka-Tamil Nadu)
- Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal (Punjab-Haryana)
- Polavaram project dispute (Andhra Pradesh-Telangana)
- Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal II (2004) – Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra
- Mahanadi Water Disputes Tribunal (2018) – Odisha & Chhattisgarh
- Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal (2010) – Goa, Karnataka, Maharashtra
- Ravi & Beas Water Tribunal (1986) – Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan
- Vansadhara Water Disputes Tribunal (2010) – Andhra Pradesh & Odisha.

Inter-State River Water Dispute Act, 1956

It governs inter-State river disputes in India.
Any State may request the Centre to refer an inter-State river dispute to a tribunal for adjudication.
Centre government may set up such a Water Disputes Tribunal within one year of the complaint.
The tribunal must decide on the dispute within three years, which may be extended by two years.
All decisions of the Tribunal are final and binding, as a decision has the same force as an order of the Supreme Court.

Inter-State River Water Disputes Amendment Bill, 2019

It was introduced in the Lok Sabha in 2019, and the Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in 2019.
It amends the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.
The Act provides for the adjudication of disputes relating to waters of interstate rivers and river valleys.
However, it remained pending in the Rajya Sabha and was not enacted into law. After the dissolution of the 17th Lok Sabha in 2024, the Bill lapsed. Therefore, the Bill is no longer active and has not become law.

Note

The proposed reforms (like a single permanent tribunal, time-bound dispute resolution, and a Dispute Resolution Committee) are not yet implemented through this Bill.
The country continues to rely on the existing Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956 (with earlier amendments).

State-level Water Governance

Each State government forms laws for water management across its districts.
Aim: To regulate water usage by industries, set rules for water treatment, set water tariffs and manage sewage water generated.
- Example: Haryana Water Resources (Conservation, Regulation and Management) Authority Act, 2020 is an example of such an act which constitutes an authority to fix tariffs for all uses of water and set rules for the use & disposal of treated wastewater.
- Some states like Andhra Pradesh and Kerala have passed irrigation and water conservation laws to stop river pollution, specify limits on water supply for irrigating crops and penalise those who violate these norms.

Local-level Water Governance: Providing tapped water to all rural and urban households falls under the purview of the various civic bodies managed by the state governments.

Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)

Aim: To provide a Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every rural household by 2024, in collaboration with States and Union Territories (UTs).
- To develop bulk water transfer facilities, treatment plants and a robust in-village water distribution network.
Funding: Outlay of Rs 3.60 lakh crore, the Centre has pledged a contribution of 100% funds for UTs without a legislature, 90% for North Eastern and Himalayan States/UTs and 50% for other states.
Status: States like Goa, Telangana and Haryana and UTs like Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Puducherry, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu have achieved 100% tap water connections.

Know more about Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)