Resilience Scanner

Aquifer Mapping Integration for Groundwater Governance

Solution Overview

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is integrating comprehensive aquifer mapping into its enterprise Geographic Information System (GIS) to enable scientific groundwater management and transparent resource governance.[2] This initiative addresses a critical knowledge gap, as the city officially reports complete dependence on surface water while research demonstrates that 50% of Pune's water supply actually comes from groundwater.[3] The approach combines detailed hydrogeological investigation with participatory mapping methods and institutional capacity building to establish a robust groundwater governance framework.[1]

Technical Components

The Advanced Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (ACWADAM) conducted a detailed hydrological investigation titled 'Pune's aquifers: Some early insights from a strategic hydrogeological appraisal' that mapped the city's aquifers and their characteristics.[1] The technical methodology incorporated six parameters to generate a groundwater recharge potential map: Land Use/Land Cover (LULC), Slope, Soil texture, Rainfall, Drainage density, and Geology.[6] ACWADAM employed citizen participation methods to create an aquifer map that achieved 85% accuracy when compared to technical survey results.[3] The mapping exercise documented five aquifers exposed over a topographic profile of nearly 250 metres, which are visible on the surface in different parts of the city and constitute the shallow unconfined aquifers accessed through dug wells.[1] Natural groundwater recharge and discharge areas identified include those lying east of Dhankawadi, the western part occupying the ridge between Kothrud and Pashan, and the ARAI hill – Vetal tekdi – Chatushringi – Bavdhan – MIT college ridge.[1] The comprehensive mapping effort aims to produce detailed aquifer maps at a scale comparable to the National Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme (NAQUIM), which was launched in 2012 by the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation to map aquifers on a scale of 1:50,000 in 3D across approximately 25 lakh square kilometers of mappable area.[5]

Implementation Details

PMC and the Groundwater Surveys and Development Agency (GSDA) are leading the groundwater mapping project as an on-going medium-term program with city-wide coverage to create comprehensive mapping leading to a Pune Aquifer Map and establish regular monitoring of aquifers.[2] The institutional framework includes establishing a Ground Water Cell under the PMC Water Department to enable conservation and equitable and sustainable utilization of groundwater resources by setting up a transparent, accountable and capable public system for governance, linking it to related public authorities.[2] The implementation strategy involves setting up a data centre equipped with required technology, resources and capabilities, with periodic reports to be published as success indicators.[2] The project aims to sharpen the aquifer mapping exercise and catalyze Participatory Groundwater Management as part of establishing a robust practice of groundwater management complemented by a groundwater governance framework for the city.[1]

Benefits and Impacts

The groundwater initiative provides availability of scientific and transparent information for decision-making and resource management, along with improved and informed management of an alternative water resource for stress situations.[2] The mapping addresses a critical resource management challenge, as groundwater extraction in Pune city doubled in the last nine years, from over 2 TMC in 2011 to nearly 4 TMC in 2018-19.[1] Historical baseline data from GSDA estimated ground water availability for Pune city in 2007-08 at 34 million cubic meters (MCM) while annual use by the city was estimated as 24 MCM.[4] The participatory mapping methodology demonstrated that citizen engagement can produce highly accurate technical outputs, with ACWADAM's community-generated aquifer map achieving 85% accuracy compared to professional technical surveys.[3]

Climate Adaptation Relevance

This system strengthens climate resilience by establishing transparent knowledge systems for managing groundwater as an alternative water resource during stress situations caused by extreme weather events and changing precipitation patterns.[2] The comprehensive aquifer mapping and monitoring framework enables adaptive management of water resources as climate variability increases pressure on both surface and groundwater supplies in urban areas.

Business Analysis

The medium-term program structure indicates a phased investment approach with city-wide implementation scope managed through the partnership between PMC and GSDA.[2] The institutional model establishes a dedicated Ground Water Cell under the PMC Water Department to create transparent, accountable and capable public systems for groundwater governance, representing a municipal capacity-building investment in technical expertise and monitoring infrastructure.[2] The data centre infrastructure requires equipped technology, resources and capabilities with ongoing operational costs for periodic reporting and monitoring activities.[2] The governance framework links the Ground Water Cell to related public authorities, suggesting an inter-agency coordination model that leverages existing institutional structures rather than creating parallel systems.[2]

Sources