9.45 lakh water bodies identified in country, 18,691 encroached upon: Jal Shakti ministry

The government on Monday said as many as 18,691 water bodies out of the 9.45 lakh identified across 22 states and Union Territories have been encroached upon.

As per the first census of water bodies conducted by Jal Shakti Ministry, the highest number of encroachments have been reported from Tamil Nadu at 8,366, followed by Andhra Pradesh at 3,920 and Telangana at 3,032.

The Ministry conducted the first census to get information about the water bodies, Minister of State for Jal Shakti Bishweswar Tudu informed Rajya Sabha in his written reply. The compilation of data is still going on and the entire process is expected to complete soon.

The objective of the census of water bodies is to develop a national database for all water bodies by collecting information on all important aspects of the subject including their size, condition, status of encroachments, use, storage capacity, he said.

The Ministry has been sensitising the states on the need for taking necessary steps, such as inclusion of water bodies in land records and making them integral part of town planning process and strict action against the encroachers, for keeping all the water bodies encroachment-free , he said.

Preservation of water bodies, including framing specific policies in this regard, lies in the domain of the state government. However, some of the policies have been framed by the Government of India in order to supplement the efforts of the state governments in this regard, the Minister added.

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