State

Groundwater level in Uttar Pradesh

Name: Groundwater extraction in Uttar Pradesh, 2009–2025
Creator: Central Ground Water Board

70%Safe

Groundwater use is within safe limits here. 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 1 points since 2020.

46.9 billion m³pumped out each year (2025)

67.0 billion m³can be taken out safely each year

Noneno yearly shortfall

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	72.0%	49.5 billion m³	68.6 billion m³	Semi-critical	First assessment in this series.
2013	74.0%	52.8 billion m³	71.6 billion m³	Semi-critical	Pumping up 7% (49.5 → 52.8 billion m³). Safe limit up 4% (68.6 → 71.6 billion m³).
2020	68.8%	46.0 billion m³	66.9 billion m³	Safe	Pumping down 13% (52.8 → 46.0 billion m³). Safe limit down 7% (71.6 → 66.9 billion m³). Main reason: less water was pumped out. CGWB changed its method in 2017 (GEC-97 to GEC-2015), so part of this change comes from the new method.
2022	70.7%	46.1 billion m³	65.3 billion m³	Semi-critical	Pumping up 0% (46.0 → 46.1 billion m³). Safe limit down 2% (66.9 → 65.3 billion m³).
2023	70.8%	46.4 billion m³	65.6 billion m³	Semi-critical	Pumping up 1% (46.1 → 46.4 billion m³). Safe limit up 0% (65.3 → 65.6 billion m³).
2024	70.5%	46.8 billion m³	66.4 billion m³	Semi-critical	Pumping up 1% (46.4 → 46.8 billion m³). Safe limit up 1% (65.6 → 66.4 billion m³).
2025	70.0%	46.9 billion m³	67.0 billion m³	Safe	Pumping up 0% (46.8 → 46.9 billion m³). Safe limit up 1% (66.4 → 67.0 billion m³).

Million m³: 1 million m³ = 100 crore litres. 2009 and 2013 used the older GEC-97 method.

Rainfall, last 20 years

Yearly rain at Uttar Pradesh, 2006–2025, from NASA satellite data. Lighter bars are dry years (20% or more below average), when wells are drawn hardest.

Loading 20 years of rainfall…

Ponds and lakes in Uttar Pradesh

65,501 of 2,45,087 water bodies (27%) are not in use: dried up, silted, built over or polluted. Bringing them back is one of the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.

2,45,087ponds, tanks, lakes and other water bodies

2,39,912of them are ponds (98%)

73%still in use (1,79,586)

15,301encroached upon

Ponds2,39,912
Tanks573
Lakes180
Reservoirs209
Check dams and percolation tanks4,177
Others36

Source: 1st Census of Water Bodies, Ministry of Jal Shakti (counted in 2018-19, published 2023).

All about the ponds and lakes in Uttar Pradesh, district by district

What will fix it here

Groundwater here is in balance. Keeping it that way means recharging as the area builds up and paves over.

Recharge · start here

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.

Recharge · start here

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.

Recharge

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.

Use less

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.

Recharge

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.

Use less

Meter borewells and fix leaks

Metered and registered borewells, leak repairs in supply lines and water-efficient fixtures cut pumping without anyone going short.

Frequently asked questions

What is the groundwater level in Uttar Pradesh?

In the 2025 Central Ground Water Board assessment, Uttar Pradesh pumped out 70% of the groundwater that can be safely taken out each year, which puts it in the "safe" category. That is 1 points higher than in 2020.

Is groundwater in Uttar Pradesh over-exploited?

No. At 70% of the safe yield, Uttar Pradesh is safe, though recharge is still needed as demand grows.

How can groundwater be recharged in Uttar Pradesh?

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 Uttar Pradesh?

The first Census of Water Bodies counted 2,45,087 water bodies in Uttar Pradesh, including 2,39,912 ponds. 65,501 of them were not in use.

Districts of Uttar Pradesh

Stage of extraction in 2025, most over-pumped first.