Sept 14, 2026

Water mismanagement may cause the desertification of India

By RN Bhaskar and Sakeena Bari Sayyed
Image:ChatGPT

Politicians do not like to talk about this subject.  Government spokespersons try to hush down any whispers about an impending crisis. Except for a few experts, most people remain ignorant about the impending water crisis.

The biggest culprit is the government.  It loves to fudge data.  And, ostrich-like, it likes to bury its head in sand.

Face the facts

Consider this – the UN talks about how India ranks third among water distressed countries in the world.  Most Indians are not even aware of this.

Consider another factor – for some reason, the government does not talk about Maharashtra being among the top five distressed states within India.  In fact, except for some reports, Maharashtra does not even appear in the list of water distressed states (https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/maharashtra-power-grassroot-mobilisation).

In spite of this:

  • The country has no policy to measure water consumption by agriculture – the biggest water guzzler in India. The government knows that monitoring of water consumption is not being done.  It knows that research emphasizes the need for digital devices, sensors, and IoT-based systems to monitor soil moisture and optimize irrigation. The report indirectly acknowledges that India does not yet have widespread metering of agricultural water use (https://www.ceew.in/sites/default/files/ceew-adapting-agricultural-water-resources-management-for-a-changing-climate.pdf).
  • India does not even have a national policy for preventing water runoffs when it rains. As a result, mountainous states see alluvial soil getting eroded, and India’s cities monitor just the water levels that will allow urban populations to have enough drinking water. The erosion of alluvial soil allows even the green slopes to get denuded, abetted by deforestation by politically protected lumber thieves.
  • It has not banned the drilling of wells to tap ground water, even though it is common knowledge that ground water in many states are falling dangerously year after year. Focus has been more on ‘buying’ politicians, than on getting their consent on policies through consensus and harmony.
  • Worse, it has now allowed investments into AI data centres without a proper national structure to ascertain if the water to be used will not further crimp India’s own requirements. Leaving this exclusively to the states could lead to all kinds of chaotic consequences. This is because data centres are energy as well as water guzzlers. That is why many nations across the world are not willing to allow a proliferation of data centres within their own territories (https://www.theindiaforum.in/environment/looming-energy-and-water-burden-indias-data-centres).

Is India developed?

Forget the government’s claim of a rejuvenated GDP growth (https://www.youtube.com/live/VA2pw9r7n_E?si=j6L80GM3UsbhOj6q).  Ignore its statements that India is rapidly industrialising.

When it comes to water consumption, India is akin to most underdeveloped countries.  Its agriculture sector continues to splurge on water consumption.  Part of the fault lies with government policies.

  • It does not meter water consumption for rural areas.
  • A politically oriented Food Corporation of India allows India to produce more wheat and rice than domestic consumption requires. That would not have mattered if production costs had been lower than international prices for rice and wheat.
  • India’s grain prices are higher than global prices, even after getting subsidised electricity, free water, and a guaranteed procurement at soaring prices (for politically well-connected families). The result is that farmers who are well connected politically, and with large agricultural holdings, continue growing rice and wheat because they see no risk in finding a buyer (the FCI) for high priced grain.
  • Policies for the promotion of solar pumps (again subsidised) only allow more water to be drawn from groundwater reserves, because farmers now don’t even have to pay for fuel costs. So, India loses more water — and subsidy — which is paid for by taxpayers. The government is aware of this. Its report on Agricultural Water Resources Management notes that India lacks robust monitoring of farm-level water use. Much of irrigation is groundwater-based, extracted without meters, making it difficult to track consumption (https://www.iiwm.res.in/iiwmad/images/document/public-IIWM-AR-2025.pdf).
  • India abets import of pulses and oilseeds (and now even milk products through New Zealand), putting domestic farmers at a disadvantage. It compels them to grow crops that often require more water (like bananas and rice).
  • Finally, it has no ambitious plan for water harvesting and water storage of excessive rainwater. It has refused to learn from companies like TEPCO in Japan, about how to store runoff water (https://asiaconverge.com/2025/10/indias-desalination-mirage/).

The result is further reduction of ground water reserves, which will soon lead to salinity of the soil, causing more havoc with crop production.

Subsidised fertiliser also contributes to increasing salinity of the soil, because more fertiliser is used than required. The fertiliser seeps into the ground and contaminates ground water resources.

As the government itself admits, “More than 80% of India’s available water resources are used for agricultural irrigation. However, only about 50% of the net sown area has irrigation facilities. Improving water use efficiency has therefore become a national priority” (https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2026/aug/doc_9732_20260829_12330401.pdf).

Lip service

Take some of the pious announcements of the government.  It launched the Namami Gange scheme – a project for cleaning the rivers of Ganga and then Yamuna (https://asiaconverge.com/2020/08/government-plunder-productive-states-in-india/).  Even today, effluents continue to flow into these rivers. As a water expert states, chucklingly, “For cleaning any waterbody, you need to first shut off all polluting sources. But effluents continue to pour into these rivers, and we continue cleaning this up on a daily basis.”

Such pious statements have been made all along.  Just consider the government’s own report which can be found at https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1814488&reg=48&lang=2 . It says, “Government of India, in partnership with States, is implementing Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)-Har Ghar Jal which aims at providing potable water in adequate quantity of prescribed quality on regular and long-term basis to every rural household through tap water connection by 2024. Under JJM, while allocating the funds to States/UTs, 10% weightage is given to the population residing in habitations affected by chemical contaminants.”

The big problem is lack of political will to stop the polluters.  The pollutants often come from commercial establishments and religious institutions.  All of them have extraordinarily strong political leanings.  The stronger the political connection, the more likely the government will be to ignore these infractions.

Finally, in this decade when climate change could disrupt agriculture in major ways, India has done precious little to promote hydroponics.  That remains – as of today – the best way to reduce water consumption for growing fruit and vegetables.  Output can be increased over tenfold as well (https://asiaconverge.com/2018/06/hydroponics-could-be-the-future-of-farming/). True, it requires higher investments.  But it allows a farmer to grow ten times the volume of crop he normally produces.  Moreover, he uses just around 10% to a quarter of the water he would normally use.  Hydroponics is an effective way of insulating crops from the vagaries of nature.  That is the best way to grow crops even when the climate becomes inhospitable for farming.  Moreover, since it does not use soil, it is largely pest-free, hence pesticide free as well.  Sadly, the government has not moved to promote such farms in a big way through the offer of soft financing and guaranteed buybacks through export linkages.

Conclusion

India used to be a land of rivers, with abundant rainfall and water resources. Instead, it has dried out water bodies, has squandered its water resources, polluted its lakes and rivers and offers no vision for a future that will be warmer, with less rain and less water in rivers. India urgently needs to have a vision and an action plan.

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Watch our latest podcast on how India has made sugar bitter and hazardous. You can find it at https://youtu.be/HYO9zaBV53A

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Watch our latest podcast on how India has made sugar bitter and hazardous. You can find it at https://youtu.be/HYO9zaBV53A

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Finally, do view our News Behind the News:

  • – Momentous BRICS Summit- Local currency, free trade mooted
  • – Govt renders UAPA meaningless
  • – Indian courts cross with police partisanship
  • – The world is getting dumber, India could be the dumbest — PISA scores

You can find it at https://www.youtube.com/live/xaz4K3kcsOE?si=Kwq7JcGPfcURa_FN

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