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Ponds and lakes · State

Ponds and lakes in Jharkhand

87,080ponds, out of 1,07,598 water bodies

The 1st Census of Water Bodies counted 1,07,598 water bodies in Jharkhand. 13,064 of them were not in use and 560 had been encroached upon. Pick a district below to see its ponds on a map, village by village.

What the census counted in Jharkhand

13,064 of 1,07,598 water bodies (12%) are not in use: dried up, silted, built over or polluted. Bringing them back is one of the cheapest ways to recharge groundwater.

1,07,598ponds, tanks, lakes and other water bodies
87,080of them are ponds (81%)
88%still in use (94,534)
560encroached upon
  • Ponds87,080
  • Tanks4,500
  • Lakes135
  • Reservoirs3,763
  • Check dams and percolation tanks12,008
  • Others112

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

Ponds in each district of Jharkhand

Districts ranked by number of ponds. The bar shows ponds; the line under each name shows all water bodies and how many are not in use.

  1. 1Dumka9,370 water bodies, 11% not in use8,618
  2. 2West Singhbhum6,740 water bodies, 10% not in use6,085
  3. 3Sahebganj5,583 water bodies, 1% not in use5,404
  4. 4Giridih5,127 water bodies, 1% not in use4,899
  5. 5Jamtara4,860 water bodies, 0% not in use4,726
  6. 6Pakur4,994 water bodies, 2% not in use4,502
  7. 7Hazaribagh4,725 water bodies, 26% not in use4,252
  8. 8Gumla6,465 water bodies, 23% not in use4,121
  9. 9Deoghar4,117 water bodies, 8% not in use3,906
  10. 10Dhanbad4,060 water bodies, 20% not in use3,880
  11. 11Ranchi5,808 water bodies, 5% not in use3,768
  12. 12Chatra4,033 water bodies, 6% not in use3,676
  13. 13Godda3,902 water bodies, 20% not in use3,501
  14. 14Saraikela Kharsawan3,851 water bodies, 17% not in use3,387
  15. 15Bokaro3,700 water bodies, 21% not in use3,289
  16. 16Latehar4,700 water bodies, 5% not in use2,473
  17. 17Lohardaga2,701 water bodies, 8% not in use2,315
  18. 18Simdega2,362 water bodies, 17% not in use2,096
  19. 19Khunti1,941 water bodies, 26% not in use1,740
  20. 20Koderma1,889 water bodies, 38% not in use1,469
  21. 21Palamau5,681 water bodies, 8% not in use1,248
  22. 22Ramgarh1,372 water bodies, 56% not in use1,226
  23. 23Garhwa3,681 water bodies, 29% not in use1,158

Groundwater in Jharkhand

Ponds are one way rain gets back into the ground. See how hard Jharkhand is pumping its groundwater, district by district.

Groundwater level in Jharkhand

Bringing a pond in Jharkhand back

Most ponds that are not in use can be revived. The work is the same in a village or a city sector:

Step 1

Survey

Map the pond's full original area, its inlets and its catchment, and record encroachments and sewage outfalls.

Step 2

Desilt

Dig out the silt that has sealed the bed, so water soaks into the ground again instead of evaporating.

Step 3

Reconnect

Clear and line the channels that bring rain in, with a silt trap before the pond; divert sewage away from it.

Step 4

Recharge

Add recharge shafts or wells in the bed where the soil is tight, so water reaches the aquifer faster.

Step 5

Protect

Fence or plant the banks, mark the boundary and hand upkeep to the panchayat or residents' body.

Talk to TerraSetu about a pondPond rejuvenation: cost and processOther ways to recharge

Frequently asked questions

How many ponds are there in Jharkhand?

The 1st Census of Water Bodies (Ministry of Jal Shakti, counted in 2018-19, published 2023) counted 87,080 ponds in Jharkhand, out of 1,07,598 water bodies in all.

How many lakes are there in Jharkhand?

The 1st Census of Water Bodies counted 135 lakes and 3,763 reservoirs in Jharkhand, along with 4,500 tanks.

How many water bodies in Jharkhand are not in use?

13,064 of the 1,07,598 water bodies (12%) were not in use when counted: dried up, silted, cut off from their catchment, polluted or built over. 560 had been encroached upon.

Which district of Jharkhand has the most ponds?

Dumka, with 8,618 ponds and 9,370 water bodies in all, according to the 1st Census of Water Bodies.

How do ponds help groundwater in Jharkhand?

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.