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 Thanjavur
101%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. Down 9 points since 2017.
1.1 billion m³pumped out each year (2025)
1.0 billion m³can be taken out safely each year
8.8 million m³yearly shortfall drawn from stored water
91%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 | 132.0% | – | – | Over-exploited | First assessment in this series. |
| 2013 | 102.0% | 760 million m³ | 747 million m³ | Over-exploited | Down 30 points since 2009. |
| 2017 | 109.9% | – | – | Over-exploited | CGWB changed its method in 2017 (GEC-97 to GEC-2015), so part of this change comes from the new method. |
| 2020 | 105.5% | 862 million m³ | 817 million m³ | Over-exploited | Down 4 points since 2017. |
| 2022 | 100.0% | 997 million m³ | 997 million m³ | Critical | Pumping up 16% (862 → 997 million m³). Safe limit up 22% (817 → 997 million m³). Main reason: more water soaked back into the ground, from better rain, canals or recharge structures. |
| 2023 | 102.8% | 949 million m³ | 923 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping down 5% (997 → 949 million m³). Safe limit down 7% (997 → 923 million m³). |
| 2024 | 100.8% | 951 million m³ | 944 million m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 0% (949 → 951 million m³). Safe limit up 2% (923 → 944 million m³). |
| 2025 | 100.8% | 1.1 billion m³ | 1.0 billion m³ | Over-exploited | Pumping up 11% (1.0 → 1.1 billion m³). Safe limit up 11% (0.9 → 1.0 billion m³). |
Million m³: 1 million m³ = 100 crore litres. 2009 and 2013 used the older GEC-97 method.
Loading 20 years of rainfall…
Ponds and lakes in Thanjavur
1,761 of 4,564 water bodies (39%) are not in use: dried up, silted, built over or polluted. Bringing them back is one of the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.
Loading the map of water bodies in Thanjavur…
- Ponds2,021
- Tanks2,160
- Lakes361
- Check dams and percolation tanks6
- Others16
Source: 1st Census of Water Bodies, Ministry of Jal Shakti (counted in 2018-19, published 2023).
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 Thanjavur?
In the 2025 Central Ground Water Board assessment, Thanjavur (Tamil Nadu) pumped out 101% of the groundwater that can be safely taken out each year, which puts it in the "over-exploited" category. That is 9 points lower than in 2017.
Is groundwater in Thanjavur over-exploited?
Yes. Thanjavur takes out more groundwater than rain and other sources put back, so the water table keeps falling.
How can groundwater be recharged in Thanjavur?
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.
How many ponds and lakes are there in Thanjavur?
The first Census of Water Bodies counted 4,564 water bodies in Thanjavur, including 2,021 ponds. 1,761 of them were not in use.
Other districts in Tamil Nadu
Salem148%Tirupathur143%Vellore122%Chennai122%Dindigul117%Mayiladuthurai117%Namakkal116%Perambalur106%Karur103%Krishnagiri92%Coimbatore92%Dharmapuri90%Tiruvannamalai86%Tiruppur86%Villupuram85%Tiruchirappalli85%Ranipet85%Theni84%Kallakurichchi81%Erode77%Tenkasi76%Madurai70%Virudhunagar64%Chengalpattu64%Cuddalore63%Tiruvallur55%Thiruvarur54%Pudukkottai49%Kancheepuram49%Ariyalur48%Tirunelveli41%Thoothukudi28%Sivagangai26%Kanniyakumari14%The Nilgiris13%Ramanathapuram11%Nagapattinam0.0%