New Delhi, Aug. 19 -- According to the UN Report on Global Water Bankruptcy 2026, "long-term water use has exceeded renewable inflows and safe depletion limits" such that previous water supply levels "cannot be restored". As the largest extractor of groundwater in the world (245-251 Billion Cubic Meters), India sits at the center of this challenge -- accounting for more consumption than China and the United States combined (each pulling roughly 112 BCM annually).

A 2025 Ministry of Water (Jal Shakti) Groundwater Resource Compilation found that groundwater supplies 64% of India's agricultural irrigation, 85% of its rural drinking water, and half of all urban water consumption. Yet approximately one in four national groundwater sources are...