Water conservation funding mandates

The Centre has amended Schedule I of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), 2005, fixing a minimum percentage of funds to be spent on water conservation and harvesting works in rural blocks based on their stage of groundwater extraction. In rural blocks categorised as ‘over-exploited’ and ‘critical’ by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), a minimum of 65 per cent of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) works in terms of cost shall be taken up for water conservation, water harvesting and other water-related works. ‘Over-exploited’…