14/01/2026
Central Ground Water Board:
The Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) recently stated in its Annual Ground Water Quality Report-2025 that Andhra Pradesh is one of the States facing widespread contamination of groundwater as per the BIS standards.
It is a multidisciplinary scientific organization of the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
It is the National Apex Agency entrusted with the responsibilities of providing scientific inputs for management, exploration, monitoring, assessment, augmentation, and regulation of groundwater resources of the country.
It was established in 1970 by renaming the Exploratory Tube wells Organization under the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India.
It was merged with the Ground Water Wing of the Geological Survey of India during 1972.
It mandate to Develop and disseminate technologies and monitor and implement national policies for the scientific and sustainable development and management of India’s groundwater resources.
It is headed by the Chairman and has five members.
CGWB is a multidisciplinary scientific organization consisting of Hydrogeologists, Geophysicists, Chemists, Hydrologists, Hydrometeorologists, and Engineers.
It has four main wings, namely
Sustainable Management & Liaison (SML)
Survey, Assessment & Monitoring (SAM)
Exploratory Drilling & Materials Management (ED&MM)
Water Quality & Training and Technology Transfer (WQ&TT).
Headquarters: Bhujal Bhawan, Faridabad, Haryana.
The major activities of the CGWB are National Aquifer Mapping and Management (NAQUIM) involving the preparation of Aquifer Maps and Management Plans, Groundwater explorations to delineate groundwater-worthy areas and potential aquifers, Geophysical surveys to delineate groundwater bearing zones, etc.