Groundwater Scenario of Cachar District, Assam

Among all the natural resources, water is indispensable for survival of all the forms of life on Earth. Groundwater being dynamic and a replenishable resource, the average annual recharge could safely be subjected to development by means of suitable groundwater abstraction structures and harnessed for various uses. The National Water Policy (2012) provides for development of groundwater in any area to the extent of average annual recharge. With increasing population, impact of climate change and degrading watersheds, sustainable management of water is now emerging as one of the biggest challenges. Reality is that inspite of having a huge resource, agricultural production has not grown upto that extent in the North Eastern Region. Poor to marginal farmers with limited individual land holdings as well as an absence of concept or practice of community based irrigation are some of the reasons for the poor agricultural growth. Recent research findings on the presence of the toxic substance like arsenic in groundwaters beyond the permissible limit in scattered locations has aggravated the situation in terms of safe drinking water supply. Proper understanding of the hydrogeological setup of a region is the prerequisite to sort out such problems. This study has focused some light to understand the hydrogeological setup of Cachar district in Assam.