The Central Government has reported steady improvement in the country’s groundwater position, supported by sustained conservation efforts and coordinated initiatives with States. Updated assessments from the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) show that annual groundwater recharge has increased from 432 BCM in 2017 to 448.52 BCM in 2025. Over the same period, the proportion of ‘safe’ assessment units rose from 62.6 per cent to 73.14 per cent, while over-exploited units declined from 17.2 per cent to 10.8 per cent. Despite this positive trend, several regions continue to face water scarcity owing to rising demand, variability in rainfall, population growth, urban expansion and industrial use. Water being a State subject, responsibility for managing and conserving groundwater lies primarily with State governments, while the Centre provides technical and financial support through major schemes. The flagship Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) anchors national efforts to enhance groundwater resources through water harvesting and artificial recharge interventions. The ongoing JSA 2025 places particular emphasis on over-exploited and critical districts. Over the past four years, the campaign has coordinated completion of approximately 121 million water conservation and recharge works through convergence, strengthening drinking water and irrigation sources. To deepen community involvement, the Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari initiative has been launched to promote rainwater harvesting as a people-led movement and to encourage region-specific solutions. Atal Bhujal Yojana has further demonstrated the value of participatory groundwater management across 80 water-stressed districts in seven States, supporting construction of check dams, ponds, recharge shafts and the adoption of micro-irrigation practices. The Jal Jeevan Mission continues to expand safe, potable tap water access for rural households through a demand-driven, community-led model, integrating source-sustainability techniques such as recharge, rainwater harvesting and grey-water management. Urban water supply is being strengthened through AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0, which expand piped supply and improve service quality. Mission Amrit Sarovar has facilitated the rejuvenation or creation of nearly 69,000 water bodies across districts, contributing to storage enhancement and aquifer recharge. The Per Drop More Crop scheme, implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, promotes micro-irrigation to improve water-use efficiency at the farm level. Following the completion of NAQUIM 1.0, which provided macro-level aquifer mapping across India, CGWB has commenced NAQUIM 2.0. This next phase focuses on water-stressed and quality-affected regions, employing advanced technologies for high-resolution hydrogeological data to support informed groundwater management. CGWB has also prepared the Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater (2020), outlining the potential for constructing 142 million recharge and rainwater harvesting structures capable of harnessing 185 BCM nationwide. State and UT administrations have been advised to use the Master Plan to guide field-level interventions.