Gujarat has retained the number one position States in water management practices, whereas Haryana and Goa have made substantial improvements in the ways they handled water to move several notches up, according to the latest rankings, announced by policy think-tank NITI Aayog, jointly with the Ministry of Jalshakti, on Friday.

The Composite Water Management Index 2.0 — prepared on the basis of data provided by State governments for financial year 2017-18 — saw Andhra Pradesh pipping Madhya Pradesh to the second spot, while the latter moved down by one position. Goa jumped seven positions to move to fourth.

The rankings comprised nine themes, including groundwater source augmentation, improved irrigation management, rural and urban water supply, sustainable on-farm water use practices and framing policies and improving water-related governance.

“It is glad to note that as many as 80 per cent of States have shown notable improvement in water management since the index was first introduced in 2018. The State, which has shown the greatest improvement of 26 per cent over the previous edition, is Haryana,” said Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, while announcing the same.

As many as 25 States and two Union Territories participated in the ranking process. West Bengal, Mizoram, Manipur and Jammu & Kashmir did not participate in the process.

Gajendra Shekhawat, Minister of Jalshakti, who was present at the occasion, said water conservation was going to a major focus for the Narendra Modi government as no country in the world depends on groundwater more than India.

Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog, hoped that experts in the policy think-tank and Jalshakti Ministry will work closely with officials in those States which are lagging behind in the ranking so that they can help identify the issues and help them improve.

Among the States that continue to languish at the bottom of the table are Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW