Second Census Shows Large State-by-State Swings in India’s Water Bodies
The census creates a national baseline for planning and renovation requiring state-level investigation to explain large count shifts.
Overview
- The government published Volume II, Part II of the Second Census of Water Bodies on September 25, 2026, covering 19 states plus Chandigarh and Jammu and Kashmir and released by Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil.
- Maharashtra reported the largest rise, listing 474,548 water bodies in 2023–24 compared with 97,062 in 2017–18, while Uttar Pradesh rose to 286,292 in the new count.
- Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh recorded the steepest falls at 63% and 50% respectively and five states in total showed declines including Jharkhand, Telangana and Rajasthan.
- The census records type, ownership, condition, use, storage capacity, filling status and encroachments and finds most water bodies are rural ponds or tanks often owned or managed by panchayats and mainly used for irrigation.
- Officials describe the dataset as a planning tool for preservation and restoration but stress the reported counts do not by themselves explain why numbers changed and call for state and site-level follow-up to determine causes and policy responses.