Switch thirsty crops, water by drip
Where most water goes to fields, moving from paddy and sugarcane to millets, pulses or maize, and from flood to drip or sprinkler irrigation, saves more than any recharge can add.
Groundwater level in Churu
129%Over-exploited
This area pumps out more water than rain puts back. That is the 2025 stage of groundwater extraction: water pumped out in a year as a share of what rain and other sources safely put back. Up 19 points since 2017.
200 million m³pumped out each year (2025)
155 million m³can be taken out safely each year
44.9 million m³yearly shortfall drawn from stored water
81%goes to irrigation; the rest to homes and industry
Extraction since 2009
Each point is one CGWB assessment. Over-exploited means more water leaves the ground than comes back, so the water table keeps falling. Hover over or tap a point to see why it moved.
Safe · up to 70%Semi-critical · 70–90%Critical · 90–100%Over-exploited · above 100%
Show the numbers
| Year | Stage | Pumped out | Safe limit | Category | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 84.0% | 114 million m³ | 135 million m³ | Semi-critical | First assessment in this series. |
| 2013 | 93.0% | 125 million m³ | 135 million m³ | Critical | Pumping up 10% (114 → 125 million m³). Safe limit down 0% (135 → 135 million m³). Main reason: more water was pumped out, mostly for irrigation (91 → 100 million m³). |
| 2017 | 110.3% | 128 million m³ | 116 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 2% (125 → 128 million m³). Safe limit down 14% (135 → 116 million m³). Main reason: less water soaked back in, from weaker rain, less canal seepage or more paved ground. CGWB changed its method in 2017 (GEC-97 to GEC-2015), so part of this change comes from the new method. |
| 2020 | 115.5% | 134 million m³ | 116 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 5% (128 → 134 million m³). Safe limit up 0% (116 → 116 million m³). Main reason: more water was pumped out, mostly for irrigation (103 → 108 million m³). |
| 2022 | 127.5% | 168 million m³ | 132 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 26% (134 → 168 million m³). Safe limit up 14% (116 → 132 million m³). Main reason: more water was pumped out, mostly for irrigation (108 → 138 million m³). |
| 2023 | 125.8% | 186 million m³ | 148 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 11% (168 → 186 million m³). Safe limit up 12% (132 → 148 million m³). |
| 2024 | 128.9% | 197 million m³ | 153 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 6% (186 → 197 million m³). Safe limit up 3% (148 → 153 million m³). Main reason: more water was pumped out, mostly for homes and industry (32 → 38 million m³). |
| 2025 | 128.9% | 200 million m³ | 155 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 2% (197 → 200 million m³). Safe limit up 2% (153 → 155 million m³). |
Million m³: 1 million m³ = 100 crore litres. 2009 and 2013 used the older GEC-97 method.
Loading 20 years of rainfall…
What will fix it here
Most of the water here goes to farming, so using less on fields matters as much as recharge.
Recharge pits and shafts in open land
Parks, campuses, warehouse yards and road sides can take recharge shafts that reach past the clay layer, so runoff that floods streets goes down to the aquifer instead.
Revive village ponds and johads
Desilting old ponds and opening their feeder channels restores natural recharge. A one-hectare pond that soaks in a metre of water over the monsoon puts back about a crore litres.
Rooftop rainwater recharge
Pipe roof water through a silt trap and filter into a recharge pit or an old borewell. Every 100 m² of roof puts back tens of thousands of litres a year, right where the pumping happens.
Check dams and contour trenches
On sloping or rocky land, small dams on seasonal streams and trenches along contours slow water down long enough for it to sink in.
Treat and reuse wastewater
Treated water from a sewage treatment plant can run flushing, gardens, cooling towers and construction, which today often draw on borewells.
Frequently asked questions
What is the groundwater level in Churu?
In the 2025 Central Ground Water Board assessment, Churu (Rajasthan) pumped out 129% of the groundwater that can be safely taken out each year, which puts it in the "over-exploited" category. That is 19 points higher than in 2017.
Is groundwater in Churu over-exploited?
Yes. Churu takes out more groundwater than rain and other sources put back, so the water table keeps falling.
How can groundwater be recharged in Churu?
Rooftop rainwater harvesting into recharge pits or old borewells, recharge shafts in open land, reviving ponds, check dams, treating and reusing wastewater, and moving farms to drip irrigation and less thirsty crops.
Other districts in Rajasthan
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