Noida's Groundwater Levels Fall by Over 16 Metres in Six Years

Officials reported that the district groundwater department had installed digital piezometers in seven areas across Noida to monitor groundwater levels before and after the monsoon. Their analysis revealed that Bisrakh and Noida experienced the highest depletion in groundwater. In 2018, the water table in Noida was recorded at a depth of 19.9 metres before the monsoon. However, by 2024, it had dropped by over 16 metres to a depth of 36.3 metres.

The post-monsoon figures showed a similar decline. In Noida, the groundwater level decreased by 14.7 metres, indicating that the monsoon rains had little to no effect on recharging this vital resource. Bisrakh, a densely populated area, also saw significant depletion, with groundwater dropping by 9.4 metres before the monsoon and by 11.6 metres after it between 2018 and 2024.

In Jewar, the district's rapidly developing region where the Noida International Airport is set to open and drive urbanisation, pre-monsoon groundwater levels fell by 1.3 metres over six years. Post-monsoon, the groundwater level, which was found at a depth of 6.8 metres in 2018, dropped to 8.9 metres, a further depletion of 2 metres. Meanwhile, Dadri and Dankaur blocks experienced relatively lower depletion, and Greater Noida was the only area that showed a slight increase in groundwater levels, suggesting that the amount of resource extracted there was being replenished in equal amounts.

Keshav Pathak, an environmentalist, expressed concern, stating that water was being used recklessly as if there was no need to conserve it for the future. He pointed out that no meaningful actions were being taken to save groundwater, such as rainwater harvesting, and that officials were merely making statements without implementing any real measures.

Last month, the groundwater department surveyed 164 high-rises and found that 90% of the rainwater harvesting systems in these societies were not functional. Officials also noted that the 140 societies with non-working systems had rainwater harvesting pits filled with stagnant water, which had accumulated debris and dirt, likely contaminating the groundwater.