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Groundwater management in NCT Delhi

The groundwater is declining in majority of the areas of Delhi on account of overexploitation of the resources. The rate of decline is as high as 1.7 to 2 meters/year in some areas (South & South west Dist.). Thus seven out of nine districts of Delhi are categorized as overexploited with respect to dynamic groundwater resources. The groundwater quality shows horizontal and vertical variation in space. The deeper aquifers are mostly underlain by saline water in alluvial areas. The extent of fluoride contamination in groundwater is also high in western part of Delhi in areas like Northwest, Southwest & West districts. The groundwater management aspects of Delhi emphasizes on augmentation of groundwater resources and improvement in groundwater quality through measures like rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge, conservation of groundwater by limiting withdrawal in overexploited areas and limited development of potential aquifers of Delhi to augment drinking water supply. The paper elaborates on groundwater scenario of Delhi and discusses the groundwater management aspects in detail.

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