Envis Centre, Ministry of Environment & Forest, Govt. of India

Printed Date: Friday, July 4, 2025

Water

 

         From the point of view of water resources Kerala is having both abundance and scarecity. The average annual rainfall of the state is 3000mm, the bulk of which (70%) is received during the South-West monsoon which sets in by June and extends upto September. The state also get rains from the North - East monsoon during October to December. However the spatial and temporal distribution pattern is mainly responsible for the frequent floods and droughts in Kerala. The average annual rainfall in the lowland of Kerala ranges from 900mm in the south to 3500mm in the north. In the midland, annual rainfall ranges from 1400mm in the south to about 6000mm in the north. In the highland, annual rainfall varies from 2500mm in the south to about 6000mm in the north. Kerala has got 41 west-flowing and 3 east flowing were originating from the Western Ghats. The total annual yield of all these rivers together is 78.041 Million Cubic Meters (MCM) of which 70,323 MCM is in Kerala. The peculiarity of the rivers flowing across Kerala is short length of the river and the elevational difference between the high and the low land leading to quick flow of water collected from the river basin and quickly discharged into the Lakshsdweep sea, the state has not been able to utilise the river water sources to a major extent. The major portion of the runoff through the rivers takes place during the monsoon seasons. 67.29% of the surface water area of 3.61 lakh hectares is constituted by brackish water lakes, backwaters and estuaries.

 

        On a rough estimate, the source wise dependence by rural households for domestic water supply dependent on traditional ground water systems is 80%, 10-15% use piped water supply systems, and 5% use traditional surface and other systems.

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  Fresh water availability in Kerala is given here

 

A graphical distribution of the locations of water on Earth

 

 

Surface Water Resources:

 

              Kerala is rich with 44 rivers which together yield 70300Mm³of water annually. However the total utilizable yield is estimated to be 42000Mm³, only 60% of the annual yield. Kerala possess only four medium rivers and 40 minor rivers.

 

                In the all India perspective the rivers of kerala are not so significant than even the largest of them cannot find a place among the major Indian rivers. With respect to the national norm Kerala does not have a single major river and has only four medium rivers. The combined discharge of these four rivers is less than half of that of river Krishna. The remaining fourty rivers are only minor ones, the combined discharge of all of them together is only about one-third of that of Godavari. western ghats from where the river originate is devoid of snow and therefore these river systems do not have the benefit of water supplied during the summer seasons as in the north Indian rivers.


Ground Water Resource of Kerala:

 

                   Kerala is a tiny strip of land, located in the southwestern tip of India between north latitudes 80 18’and 120 48’ and east longitudes 740 52’ and 770 22’, occupying only 1.2 percent of India's land area. Geographically, an elongated strip of land, cushioned between the Western Ghats on the east and the sandy shores of the Arabian Sea along west. Its land area is 38,863 sq.km, stretching 580 km in length and varying in width from 30 to 120 km. Even though Kerala has got only 1.2% of the total area of India (3,287,263 sq. km), 3 percent of country's population inhabits the state. The state is subdivided into 14 districts and 152 community development blocks for administrative convenience.

 

                The occurrence and availability of ground water vary considerably from place to place within the state depending on the prevailing climatic, geomorphological and hydrogeological conditions. About 88 percent of the total geographical area of the state is underlain by crystalline rocks devoid of any primary porosity, with limited ground water prospects. In the alluvial formations having multiple aquifer systems, quality is sometimes a constraint in the optimal development of available resources. Increasing population and rapid urbanization has resulted in increasing use of ground water resources over the last few decades in the state. Judicious and planned development of ground water and its scientific management have become necessary to ensure long-term sustainability of this precious natural resource of Kerala. The ground water resources of the state are being periodically assessed jointly by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) with the State Ground Water Department and other Central Government as well as State Government agencies according to the methodology recommended by the Groundwater Estimation Committee constituted by Govt. of India from time to time.

 

                The total annual groundwater recharge in the state has been assessed as 5.67 bcm. Keeping an allocation for natural discharge, the annual extractable ground water resource has been assessed as 5.13 bcm. The annual groundwater extraction (as in 2024) is 2.76 bcm. The average stage of groundwater extraction for the state works out to be 53.78 %. Out of the total 152 assessment units (Blocks) in the state, 3(1.97 %) assessment units the stage of groundwater extraction is between 90-100% and have been categorized as ‘Critical’. There are 29 (19.08 %) “Semi-critical’’ units, where the stage of ground water extraction is between 70 % and 90 % and 120 (78.95 %) ‘Safe ‘units, where the stage of Ground water extraction is less than 70 %.

  

Hydrogeology:

 

         The occurrence and movement of groundwater in various litho-units underlying the State are mainly controlled by the physiography, geological setting, and structural features.  

 

(i) Physiography:

 

              The state can be sub-divided into three major units based on their Physiographic characteristics viz. the coastal plains/Lowlands, the midlands and the hill ranges/Highlands. The coastal plains have an elevation of less than 7.6m above mean sea level (a.m.s.l). The elevation of the midland region ranges from 7.6 to 76 m amsl and that of the hill ranges is more than 76 m above mean sea level. Along the hill ranges two distinct plateau regions are seen, the important being the Wayanad plateau, covering major part of Wayanad district, with elevations above 700 m. amsl and the Munnar plateau, located along the northern part of Idukki district with a general elevation of about 1000 m. amsl are the prominent plateaus in the hilly region of the state.

 

(ii) Rain Fall: 

 

                Rainfall is the main source of ground water recharge in the state. For climatological purposes especially for rainfall, a year is divided into 4 seasons: Winter (January and February), Pre-monsoon (March to May), South West Monsoon (June to September) and Post Monsoon (October to December). The rainfall has direct impact on ground water regime. Groundwater table is usually deeper during pre-monsoon and before the onset of the monsoon and it becomes shallow during monsoon and shortly before the cessation of monsoons. The extraction of groundwater is not extensive for irrigation during the monsoons and in subsequent month after the monsoon, as sufficient moisture remains in the root zone from the monsoon rainfall. After the end of monsoon, as the ground water extraction increases, the groundwater table begins to decline. Based on these dynamics, the ground water assessed in a groundwater year (April to March for Kerala) comprises both monsoon season. It is pertinent to mention that, the assessment of groundwater resources for monsoon period in a ground water year includes southwest monsoon months and one subsequent and one previous month for Kerala, that is from May to October. The amount of rainfall received shows a gradual decrease from North to South. The spatial distribution of normal annual rainfall in the State is shown below:

 

               The climate of Kerala, as per Koppen's classification, is tropical monsoon with seasonally excessive rainfall and hot summer. The annual normal rainfall of Kerala state for the period 1994-2023 varies from 3606.9 mm in Idukki district to 1808.7 mm in Thiruvananthapuram district with state average of 2884.1mm. The Southwest monsoon season contributes around 69% percentage of annual normal rainfall and Northeast monsoon (Post Monsoon) season contributes 17% of annual normal rainfall of the state.

 

              The state received a deficient annual rainfall of 2246.1 mm (22% below normal) during the calendar year 2023. The district wise annual rainfall varied from 1581.9 mm in Palakkad district to 3198 mm in Pathanamthitta district. The departure percentage from normal rainfall varied from -47% in Wayanad district to 15% in Pathanamthitta district. Nine districts of the state (Wayanad, Kozhikode, Idukki, Thrissur, Malappuram, Palakkad, Kannur, Kottayam & Kasaragod) received deficient rainfall and remaining 5 districts (Pathanamthitta, Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha, Kollam & Ernakulam) received normal rainfall in 2023 as per IMD classification. During the groundwater assessment year 2023-24, Kerala received 2270.1 mm rainfall (21% below normal). The district wise rainfall pattern showed a similar trend to that of calendar year 2023. District wise rainfall varied from 1594.6 mm in Palakkad district to 3110 mm in Pathanamthitta district. Departure from normal varied from -47% in Wayanad district to 12% in Pathanamthitta district. Eight districts of the state received deficient rainfall (-20% to -59% departure from normal) and remaining six districts received normal rainfall (-19% to +19% departure). Hilly districts of the state Wayanad (-47%) and Idukki (-39%) received significantly less rainfall from normal during the groundwater assessment year 2023-24.

 

(iii) Geology:

 

                As much as 88% of the State is underlain by crystalline rocks of Archaean age comprising schistose formations, Charnockites, Khondalites and gneisses. All these formations are intruded by dykes of younger age. The sedimentary formations of Tertiary age occurring along the western parts of the State comprise four distinct beds viz. Alleppey, Vaikom, Quilon and Warkali. The crystalline and the Tertiary formations are lateralized along the midland area. Alluvial deposits of recent origin are seen along the coastal plains. The general stratigraphic sequence is given below:

 

Stratigraphic Succession of Geological Formations in Kerala

Age

Formation

Lithology

Recent

Alluvium

Sand, clay, riverine alluvium etc

Sub-recent

Laterite

Derived from crystalline and sedimentaries

Warkali

Sandstone, clays with lignite

Quilon

Limestone, marl and clay

Tertiary

Vaikom

Sandstone with pebbles, clay and lignite

Alleppey

Carbonaceous clay and fine sand

Undated

Intrusives

Dolerite, Gabbro, Granites, Quartzo - feldspathic Veins.

Archaean

Wayanad group

Granitic gneiss, Schists etc.

Charnockites

Charnockites and associated rocks

Khondalites

Khondalites suite of rocks and its associates



Occurrence of Ground water:

 

              A generalized Hydro-geological Map of Kerala is given in Figure below. In hard rock terrain, comprising weathered crystallines and laterites, ground water occurs under phreatic conditions in the weathered residuum and the shallow fractures hydraulically connected to it; below this semi-confined to confined conditions prevails in the deep fracture zones. In the alluvial terrain, ground water in the shallow systems is in phreatic condition. Granular zones in the Tertiary sedimentary formations at deeper levels and forms potential confined to semiconfined aquifers.

 

 

 
Groundwater Availability of Kerala:

 

               As per the 2024 assessment of Dynamic Ground Water Resources, the Total Annual Ground Water Recharge for the Kerala state has been assessed as 5.67 billion cubic meter (bcm) and the Annual Extractable Ground Water Resources is 5.13 bcm with total natural discharges at 0.54 bcm. Rainfall recharge during monsoon and non-monsoon period is the major contributor of total annual groundwater recharge of the state, which is 4.68 bcm or 82.60 % of the total recharge (Monsoon season: 73.93%, Non-monsoon season: 8.67%) and the remaining 17.40 % (Monsoon season: 2.37%, Non-monsoon season: 15.03%) or 0.97 bcm is from ‘Other sources’ viz. return flow from irrigation, recharge from tanks, ponds and water conservation structures taken together. The details are shown in the figure 6.1 below. The contribution in annual ground water recharge from rainfall during monsoon season is more than 70% in Kerala. (Figure 6.2). The overall contribution of rainfall (both monsoon & non-monsoon) recharge is 82.6% and the share of recharge from ‘Other sources’ viz. return flow from irrigation, recharge from tanks, ponds and water conservation structures taken together is 17.4%.

 

 

 

 

Annual Extractable Ground Water Resources:  The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge for the entire State is 5.13 billion cubic metre (BCM). The district-wise availability in the State ranges from 191.44 MCM in Idukki district to 584.17 MCM in Palakkad district. The spatial distribution of unit annual ground water recharge in Kerala as on 2024 in depth units (m) is shown below:

 

 

Annual Extractable Ground Water Resources of assessments units under different category and district wise assessment is given here. 

 

Annual Total Ground Water Extraction: Ground water Extraction in Kerala is mainly for domestic uses and for irrigation. Domestic requirement of water in the State has been computed as the product of the population and the per-capita water requirement (assumed as 150 litres per capita per day). The assessment of ground water extraction is carried out considering the 6th Minor Irrigation Census data and sample surveys carried out by the State Ground Water Departments. The Extraction for Industrial uses is very less when compared to Domestic and Irrigation use, and has been estimated using unit draft and consumptive use pattern method, in which assessment unit wise number of wells, industrial units & type and season wise unit draft of each type of well collected by the State Ground Water Dept., Government of Kerala. The spatial distribution of annual ground water extraction in Kerala as on 2024 in depth units (m) is shown below:

 

 

Ground Water Extraction: The Total Annual Ground Water Extraction of the state for the year 2024 has been estimated as 2.76 bcm and ranges from 56.04 MCM in Wayanad district to 348.11 MCM in Malappuram district. The domestic use is the largest consumer of groundwater resources, accounting for 59.06 % of the total annual groundwater extraction, which amounts to 1.63 bcm followed by the agriculture sector which accounts for 40.58% (1.12 bcm), while industrial use represents 0.36% (0.01 bcm) of total annual groundwater extraction of the Kerala State. 

 

 

Stage of Ground Water Extraction The Stage of Ground Water Extraction of assessment units computed as the ratio of Existing Gross Ground Water Extraction for all uses and the Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge expressed in percentage.The stage of Ground water extraction for the Kerala State is 53.78 %. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is the highest in Malappuramdistrict (73.19%) and the lowest in Wayanad district (26.29%). The stage of ground water extraction of Kerala State, 2024 is shown below: 

 

 

Categorization of Blocks

  

              The Assessment units have been categorized as “Over-exploited”, “Critical”, “Semi-critical” and “Safe” based on Stage of Ground Water Extraction and the long-term decline of average ground water levels in the observation wells in the assessment unit. Out of 152 assessed units in the State, 3 blocks (Chittur & Malampuzha blocks of Palakkad district and Kasaragodblock of Kasaragod district) have been categorized as “Critical”; 29 blocks are “Semi-critical” and 120 blocks arein “Safe” category. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction and the block-wise long-term (2014-2023) water leveltrends of the observation wells being monitored by Central Ground Water Board and the State Ground Water Department for pre and post-monsoon were considered for categorization of the blocks. The spatial distributionof different categories of assessment units is given below:  

 

(Source: Ground Water Resources of Kerala 2024)

  

             The district- wise and block-wise numbers of assessment units under different categories are given here.  Categorization of Critical and Semi critical blocks as in 2024 is given here.

 

District-wise Ground Water Resource Scenario

 

1. Alappuzha: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 360.44 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 141.77 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 39.33 %. All the blocks in the district are Safe from the point of view of ground water extraction.

 

2. Ernakulam: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 462.48 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 229.51 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 49.63%. All the blocks in the district are Safe from the point of view of ground water extraction.

 

3. Idukki: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 188.57 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 102.21 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 54.21%. Out of 8 blocks in the district, 2 have been categorized as ‘Semi-critical’ (Kattappana and Nedumkandam) and 6 blocks as ‘Safe’.

                 

4. Kannur: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 398.53 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 198.25 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 49.75 %. Out of 11 blocks in the district, 3 have been categorized as ‘Semi-critical’ viz; Kannur, Thalassery and Panur and 8 blocks as ‘Safe’.

 

5. Kasaragod: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 314.18 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 228.57 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 72.75%. Out of 6 blocks in the district, 1 has been categorized as ‘Critical’ viz. Kasaragod; 1 as ‘Semi-critical’ viz. Manjeshwar block and 4 blocks as ‘Safe’.

 

6. Kollam: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 323.35 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 167.93 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 51.93%. Out of 11 blocks in the district, 2 blocks (Mukhathala and Sasthamkotta) is ‘Semicritical’ and 9 blocks are ‘Safe’.

 

7. Kottayam: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 370.31 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 137.44 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 37.11%. All the blocks in the district are in ‘Safe’ category.

 

8. Kozhikode: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 306.28 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 188.98 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 61.70%. Out of 12 blocks in the district, 3 are ‘Semi-critical’ (Balussery, Kozhikode and Kunnamangalam) and others are ‘Safe’.

 

9. Malappuram: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 484.34 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 346.53 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 71.55 %. Out of 15 blocks in the district, 8 are ‘Semi-critical’ (Kondotty, Kuttipuram, Malappuram, Mankada, Thanur, Thirurangadi, Tirur & Vengara) and remaining blocks are ‘Safe’.

 

10. Palakkad: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 567.68 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 339.21 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 59.75%. Out of 13 blocks in the district, 2 are ‘Critical’ (Chittur & Malampuzha), 2 blocks are ‘Semicritical’(Pattambi and Thrithala) and 9 blocks are ‘Safe’.

 

11. Pathanamthitta: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 208.70 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 78.53 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 37.63%. All the 8 blocks of the district have been categorized as ‘Safe’.

 

12. Thiruvananthapuram: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 257.82 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 174.62 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 67.73 %. Out of 11 blocks, 6 are ‘Semi critical’ (Athiyannur, Chirayinkil, Nedumangad, Parassala, Pothencode and Varkala) and 5 are ‘Safe’.

 

13. Thrissur: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 558.81 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 340.55 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 60.94%. Out of 16 blocks in the district, 3 are ‘Semi-critical’ (Chowannur, Mathilakam and Thalikulam). All the other blocks are safe.

 

14. Wayanad: The Annual Extractable Ground Water Recharge of the district is 203.78 MCM and existing Gross Ground Water Extraction is of the order of 56.48 MCM. The Stage of Ground Water Extraction is 27.67 %. All four blocks in the district are ‘Safe’.

 

Groundwater Management

 

                The State Ground Water Department is thenodal agency for groundwater development and management in the State and it extends demand-based services to private individuals and Government agencies. Groundwater conservation and recharge is a major activity being implemented by the Department to sustain groundwater availability. For ensuring the quality of Groundwater, the Department has initiated measures to formulatea State-wide groundwater quality plan. From each District, one block severely affected by water quality issues will be selected for collection of water samples from observation wells. The samples will be quality tested in the respective regional labs of the department. A total of 860 samples were collected and analysed from Idukki, Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam and Kottayam Districts.The data thus obtained will help in addressing the issues by suggesting suitable remedial measures and also by making the public aware of the situation. Also, during the period, the Department has initiated the conduct of well census for the collection of ground water abstraction data. Through Kudumbasree Mission, data collection was carried out partially in 39 blocks using mobile app ‘Neerarivu’, there by completing 45 per cent of data collection. The validated data will be usedfor accurate budgeting of water resources of the particular block.

 

Other Resources:

 

             Apart from rivers and wells sources like tanks, ponds, springs and surangams are also use in Kerala for providing water for drinking as well as irrigation. It is estimated that Kerala has approximately 995tanks and ponds having more than 15000 Mm³ summer storage. Natural springs occurring in the highland regions of Kerala state have the potential to be developed as good sources for drinking water supply and also for limited small scale irrigation, especially in remote and under developed areas. A total of 236 springs have been identified in the state. Kasaragode district in Northern Kerala has 510 special kind of water harvesting structure called Surangams which have >111pm discharge.


Hydrology Information Systems:
 

                 The State has 41 west-flowing and three east-flowing rivers, and has an average annual rainfall of about 3,000mm. However, the extent to which it can retain, store, and use these for agricultural purposes is still inadequate. In order to have a realistic assessment of water resources in the State, the Investigation Design and Research Board of Irrigation department is in the process of modernising the existing hydrology information system with a Real-Time Data Acquisition System. The core activity of the hydrology wing of the Irrigation department is the collection, validation, and collation of hydro-meteorological data from various gauging stations, established across Kerala river basins. The National Hydrology Project, funded by World Bank, also aims at improving the quality and accessibility of water resources information and to strengthen the capacity of water resources management institutions in the State. The objective is to establish an effective hydrologic database and hydrological information system for effective water resources planning and management.

 

                   The consecutive floods of 2018 and 2019 necessitated an early flood warning system for the State. Flood Forecasting and Early Warning System (FFEWS) integrated with reservoir operations for Periyar and Chalakudy basins were initiated during the 13th Five-Year Plan period under the National Hydrology Project. FFEWS acts as an end-to-end system for issuing timely warning against disaster. The accuracy of the forecast depends on the real time hydro-met data received, and the quality of topographical features.

 

Irrigation Status: 

 

                 As per the assessment of the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, the extent of irrigation in the State in 2022-23 had slightly varied when compared to the previous year. As reported, the net area irrigated in the State in 2023-24 increased to 4.19 lakh ha as compared to the 2022-23 figure of 4.18 lakh ha, showing a marginal increase of 0.23 per cent. The percentage of net area irrigated to net area sown had risen from 19.9 (2021-22) to 21.3 (2023-24). However, a decline is reflected in the Gross Irrigated area with a fall in the area from 5.61 lakh ha (2021-22) to 5.31 lakh ha (2023-24). This decline is also reflected in the percentage of gross irrigated area to gross cropped area which fell from 22.3 per cent (2021-22) to 21 per cent in (2023-24).

 

                Among the various sources of irrigation, the net area irrigated through wells (including bore wells) leads with 1.83 lakh ha during the review period, whereas the benefitted area was 1.77 lakh ha in 2022-23. The extent of net area irrigated through Government canals also showed a decrease from 0.81 lakh ha (2022-23) to 0.77 lakh ha (2023-24). Details on the net area irrigated (source-wise and District-wise) are given are given below:  

 

                                                 Net Area Irrigated (Source wise)                               (in Ha.)

Source

2021-22

2022-23

2023-24

Government Canal

72491.00

81985.68

77638.28

Private canals

257.00

292.63

173.86

Tanks

47588.00

45806.27

47906.96

Wells

121764.00

121169.76

129096.09

Other sources

161135.00

169333.58

165075.64

Total

403235.00

418587.92

419890.83

Gross irrigated area

561314.02

514497.97

531870.53

Net area irrigated to net area sown (%)

19.87

21.02

21.28

Gross irrigated area to gross cropped area (%)

22.25

20.45

20.97

Irrigated area under paddy to total irrigated area (%)

27.44

29.89

30.12

Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics

  

Net Area Irrigated (District Wise) 2023 - 24 are given here.

 

              Crop-wise, paddy and coconut were the crops most benefitted through irrigation. The gross area irrigated under paddy had slightly increased to 1.60 lakh ha (2023-24) from 1.53 lakh ha (2022-23). But the area irrigated under coconut shows a significant increase to 1.63 lakh ha (2023-24) from 1.56 lakh ha (2022-23). Compared to the previous year, the vegetables irrigated area had remained the same 0.29 lakh ha (2023-24). But banana had benefitted through irrigation reaching 0.42 lakh ha (2023- 24) from 0.40 lakh ha (2022-23). Details on gross area irrigated and crops benefitted are given here.

   

Status of Major and Medium Irrigation Projects

 

                    Agriculture and irrigation are intricately linked, as irrigation plays a crucial role in enhancing crop Major and Minor irrigations are vital for optimizing agricultural output, particularly, in regions prone to drought or irregular rainfall, thereby sustaining livelihood and promoting economic growth. The implementation progress of Idamalayar, Karapuzha and Banasurasagar irrigation projects are described below:

 

                     The main canal of the Idamalayar Irrigation Project, having a length of 32.278 km as completed for irrigating an ayacut of 999 ha. The construction of railway crossing portion of Low-Level Canal (LLC) at ch.13,818.5m in Angamaly Municipality and the construction of tail end discharge at ch.14,623m in Nedumbassery Panchayat has been completed. The construction of flush escape (ch. 14,623) has been started and the portion of Bhoothamkutty branch canal (ch. 3,550m) and its off take point (ch. 909 km) has to be modified as link canal. Out of the total length of 7.500 km, 2.035 km of the link canal was completed. Steps for augmenting the benefit of field channels and natural thodu have been completed and additional 85 Ha ayacut was achieved. For stabilising the existing ayacuts, maintenance of damaged portions of canals were carried out. In 2023-24, 4,270 ha ayacut has been achieved.

 

                      The Karapuzha project, originally envisaged as an irrigation project has now transformed into a multi-purpose project with drinking water supply, tourism, power generation and fisheries projects. In the Karapuzha Irrigation project, the entire Left Bank Main Canal (LBMC) up to the tail end (ch. 16,740 m) is now made functional for irrigating an ayacut of 245 ha. Water distribution up to the tail end of LBMC was done on March 15, 2023 on a trial basis. Having completed the rectification works of the breach in the Right Bank Main Canal (RBMC) between ch.7,673m and 7,888m, water distribution up to the tail end (ch.8,805m) is being done in 2023, thereby irrigating 331 ha. Thus, the water distribution through main canals and Arimunda distributary (60.31 ha) helped in achieving a total ayacut of 636.5 ha. Moreover, water distribution through Kolliyil Branch Canal (up to ch. 1,540 m) was also done on a trial basis on March 8, 2023. Thus in 2022-23, both the main canals (25.5 km) and the Kollayil Branch Canal (1.5 km) of the Karapuzha project were made functional for the first time. Water distribution through both the main Canals, Left Bank Main Canal of 16.7 km length serving an ayacut of 245.2 ha (ch. 0-16,740) and Right Bank Main Canal of 8805 m length serving an ayacut of 330 ha (ch.0- 8,805) up to tail end has become possible as rectification works of canal breach at ch.4,800m of Left Bank Main Canal (LBMC) had been completed in 2023-24. The completion of major works at ch.1,800m and the ongoing rectification works of the Padinjareveedu Branch Canal has enabled water availability for 358 hectares of agricultural land. The full commissioning of the Karapuzha irrigation project will benefit the local farmers, particularly, the most populated Tribal/Adivasi people of Wayanad District.

 

                    A major constraint of the Banasurasagar Irrigation Project was the bottleneck from ch.1,130m to 1,500m in the Main Canal. The Department has succeeded in overcoming this constraint and 39 per cent works have been completed. Additional 0.56 ha of land is required for the completion of Kappumkunnu distributary. As an initial procedure of land acquisition, peg marking of 0.1 ha of land has been done in Kappumkunnu distributary. In 2023-24, water test was conducted in the aqueduct portion of the Main Canal from ch. 0m to ch. 150m. Completion of 1101m of Kappumkunnu distributary, 585 m of Pearl distributary and 1,190 m of Venniyode branch canal, land acquisition and peg marking of 0.4 ha of land in Kuppadithara distributary and completion of soil investigation for the aqueduct portion of various distributaries are few other project related activities carried out during the period.  

 

Minor Irrigation:

 

                Minor irrigation (MI) schemes have contributed substantially to augment the irrigation potential in the State. Minor Irrigation has its own importance due to low gestation, less investment and quick benefit. Kerala’s undulating terrain makes major irrigation projects expensive, giving minor irrigation schemes a definite advantage over the Major Irrigation Schemes. The importance given to Minor Irrigation during the 13th Five Year Plan period is being continued during the 14th Plan period.

 

Surface Water

 

                  During the 13th Five Year Plan period, through various surface water MI schemes, 23,601 ha of ayacut was achieved. The net area benefitted through MI schemes (surface water) in 2023- 24 was 4179 ha. Details of physical achievement of MI schemes (surface water) during 2022-23 to 2023-24 are given below. NABARD has sanctioned 1,631 schemes under various tranches including RIDF XXIX. Of these, 1,364 schemes are completed and 17 are in progress. Remaining schemes are dropped due to non-feasibility reasons.  

 

Physical Achievement of Minor Irrigation (Surface Water) (Net area in ha.

Name of Schemes

2022-23

2023-24

2024-25 upto August 31, 2024

MI Class I

1177.88

1138.80

334.32

MI Class II

1505.04

1039.69

446.13

Lift Irrigation works

883.90

530.51

174.24

Repairs to MI structure

1101.47

902.81

341.9

MI Class I – NABARD

407.80

567.02

1625.83

Total

5076.09

4178.83

2922.42

Source: Irrigation Department (I&A), GoK

 

Flood Management:

 

               The Department recognises the increasing risk of flooding in Urban areas due to rapid urbanisation and climate change. As part of flood mitigation works, construction of flood bunds, enhancement of drainage systems, and development of small-scale reservoirs to manage excess rainwater are undertaken. In urban areas like Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, specific strategies to create a resilient urban environment capable of withstanding severe weather events while minimising disruption to daily life will be implemented.

 

 

 

  Source: Dynamic Groundwater Resources of Kerala 2024,  Economic Review 2024