All food business operators will face action if they extracted ground roundwater without approval from the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), a national apex body under the Union Water Resources Ministry set up with an aim to regulate groundwater across the country.
A decision in this regard was taken recently at a meeting of the inter-ministerial committee set up for issuance of license for groundwater users wherein the No-objection Certificate has been mandated for all the packaged water drinking units (PWDUs) in the country.
Following the decision, the Food Safety and Standard Authority (FSSAI), country’s top food regulator has also asked all the State Food Authority to take appropriate action in this regard.
Senior officials from the CGWB said that the meeting called by the Union Water and Resources Ministry followed several complaints that various food business operators particularly those engaged in packaged water bottle sector were violating the norms. This was causing depletion in ground water level, said a senior official from the CGWB.
The CGWB constituted under the Environment Protection Act 1986 has already notified 162 areas across the country for groundwater extraction. Under the notified areas, extraction of groundwater for commercial and industrial uses is completely prohibited.
According to a report, situation is worsening day by day. New 49 blocks and taluks have been identified on the basis of critical groundwater conditions arising out of unchecked extraction of water from the ground.
Out of the 49 blocks or taluks to be declared over-exploited (a condition in which more water is extracted than is recharged in a year) or critical, four are situated in Gujarat while eight are in Haryana. Twenty blocks and taluks are located in Punjab while 12 are in Rajasthan. Five blocks to be declared critical are in Uttar Pradesh, says the report.
As per the CGWA, real estate and agriculture followed by domestic and industrial uses are the biggest groundwater extractors.