Key Terms & Concepts — UPSC Mains
Atal Bhujal Yojana
"₹6,000 crore World Bank-assisted central scheme (2020-25, extended) for community-led groundwater management in 8,220 over-exploited gram panchayats across 7 states."
Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY) is a centrally-sponsored scheme launched on December 25, 2019 (anniversary of Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth) and operational from April 1, 2020. With a total outlay of ₹6,000 crore — funded 50:50 by the World Bank and the Government of India — it implements community-led groundwater management in 8,220 over-exploited and water-stressed gram panchayats across 80 districts in seven states: Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. Implementing ministry: Department of Water Resources, Ministry of Jal Shakti. The scheme operates on two components: (1) Institutional Strengthening and Capacity Building — gram panchayats prepare Water Security Plans (WSP); (2) Incentive Funding to states that meet pre-agreed groundwater outcomes (disbursement-linked indicators). The scheme has been extended beyond the original 2025 end-date. ABHY is the Centre's flagship demand-side groundwater intervention, complementing supply-side schemes like PMKSY.
GS3 (water resources, agriculture, environment). Prelims: launch date, outlay, World Bank funding share, 7 states list, gram panchayat count. Mains: groundwater overexploitation, demand-side vs supply-side water management, federal coordination.
- 1 Launched: December 25, 2019 (operational from April 1, 2020)
- 2 Total outlay: ₹6,000 crore
- 3 Funding: 50:50 World Bank + Government of India
- 4 Coverage: 8,220 gram panchayats, 80 districts, 7 states
- 5 Seven states: Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, MP, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, UP
- 6 Implementing ministry: Jal Shakti (Dept of Water Resources)
- 7 Components: Institutional strengthening + disbursement-linked incentives
- 8 Approach: community-led, demand-side groundwater management
- 9 Pre-requisite: gram panchayats prepare Water Security Plans
Business Standard's May 29, 2026 editorial on India's water stress called for an aggressive scale-up of Atal Bhujal Yojana — extending it beyond the original 7 states to all CGWB-classified over-exploited blocks before industrial demand outpaces aquifer recharge.
