Survey
Map the pond's full original area, its inlets and its catchment, and record encroachments and sewage outfalls.
The 1st Census of Water Bodies counted 1,958 ponds, tanks, lakes and other water bodies in Sant Ravidas Nagar district. 674 of them (34%) were not in use and 63 had been encroached upon. Sant Ravidas Nagar has the 46th most ponds of the 75 districts in Uttar Pradesh the census counted.
674 of 1,958 water bodies (34%) 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 Sant Ravidas Nagar…
Source: 1st Census of Water Bodies, Ministry of Jal Shakti (counted in 2018-19, published 2023).
Sant Ravidas Nagar pumps out 75% of the groundwater that can safely be taken out each year (2025, Central Ground Water Board), which the board rates semi-critical. Every pond that holds rain long enough for it to soak in puts some of that water back, so the 674 ponds and tanks not in use are a recharge opportunity going to waste.
Most ponds that are not in use can be revived. The work is the same in a village or a city sector:
Map the pond's full original area, its inlets and its catchment, and record encroachments and sewage outfalls.
Dig out the silt that has sealed the bed, so water soaks into the ground again instead of evaporating.
Clear and line the channels that bring rain in, with a silt trap before the pond; divert sewage away from it.
Add recharge shafts or wells in the bed where the soil is tight, so water reaches the aquifer faster.
Fence or plant the banks, mark the boundary and hand upkeep to the panchayat or residents' body.
The 1st Census of Water Bodies (Ministry of Jal Shakti, counted in 2018-19, published 2023) counted 1,952 ponds in Sant Ravidas Nagar district, out of 1,958 water bodies in all. That is the 46th most ponds of 75 districts in Uttar Pradesh counted by the census.
The 1st Census of Water Bodies recorded no lakes or reservoirs in Sant Ravidas Nagar district; its 1,958 water bodies are mostly ponds and 6 tanks.
674 of the 1,958 water bodies (34%) were not in use when counted: dried up, silted, cut off from their catchment, polluted or built over. 63 had been encroached upon.
A working pond holds rain long enough for it to soak into the ground and refill wells and borewells nearby. A silted or encroached pond sends that rain down the drain instead. Desilting, reopening inlets and adding recharge shafts in the pond bed are among the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.
In the 2025 Central Ground Water Board assessment, Sant Ravidas Nagar district pumped out 75% of the groundwater that can safely be taken out each year ("semi-critical").
Districts ranked by number of ponds in the 1st Census of Water Bodies.