Business giant ITC ties up with state govts of Maharashtra, Karnataka for river basin rejuvenation

Mumbai: Kolkata-headquartered multi-business conglomerate ITC Ltd has forged partnership with the state governments of Maharashtra and Karnataka for river basin rejuvenation.

ITC and Maharashtra Government’s Water Resources Department partnered in February 2025 to promote water use efficiency across 60 major irrigation projects in the Godavari, Krishna, and Tapi river basins.

ITC and Karnataka Government’s Department of Rural Development & Panchayat Raj and Vyakti Vikas Kendra India (VVKI) partnered in March 2025 for Water conservation & Ground water recharge in the South Pennar River basin, which can facilitate mitigation of water scarcity challenges in and around Bengaluru.

According to a press release issued here on Tuesday, ITC’s River Basin Revival Programme covers a total area of 21 lakh acres across Maharashtra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka.

ITC’s initiatives have already enabled four basins including the Ghod river basin in Maharashtra become water positive as against the water balance deficit estimated by the water balance studies done at the inception of work in each of these basins.

ITC’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with the Maharashtra Water Resources Department marks a significant milestone in its journey of river basin regeneration. Launched in February 2025, this partnership aims to enhance water use efficiency across 60 major irrigation projects in the Godavari, Krishna, and Tapi river basins.

Covering over 4.25 lakh acres and engaging 521 water user groups, the initiative aims to facilitate water positive status in the basins by improving water literacy among Water User Groups and improving water use efficiency in major crops.

This collaboration builds on an earlier successful partnership with the state in 2020 that improved water use efficiency across five irrigation projects, positively impacting crop yields and farm incomes.

Commenting on the initiative, Mr. S Sivakumar, Head of Sustainability, Agri and IT at ITC Ltd. said, “As a part of our large- scale sustainability efforts, ITC has pioneered a large-scale integrated water stewardship

programme, earning the distinction of being water positive for the last 22 years. Given the scale and complexity of climate change and increasing pressure on water resources, ITC has reimagined its water

stewardship strategy to strengthen the scale and impact of its initiatives by embarking upon an ambitious plan to achieve water-positive status at the river basin level. Our recent PPPs with the Government of

Maharashtra and Karnataka embodies our commitment to strengthen our river basin rejuvenation programme further in days to come, positively impacting even more lives, livelihoods and landscapes.”