Question
Mention the five characteristics each of 'surface water resources' and 'groundwater resources' in India.
Solution
The five characteristics of surface water resources in India are mentioned under :
(i) The surface water is found in ponds, tanks, rivers, streams and reservoirs.
(ii) Rivers are the major sources of water in India. There are 10,360 rivers and their tributaries longer than 1.6 km each spread in our country.
(iii) The mean annual flow is estimated to be 1,869 billion cubic metres.
(iv) Only 690 cm (32 percent) of the available surface water can be utilised.
(v) The Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra carry nearly 60 percent of the total surface water.
The five characteristics of groundwater resources in India are as under :
(i) The replenishable ground water potential in India is estimated to be 433.9 billion cubic metres.
(ii) Water percolates easily in the alluvial plains hence it has high potential of ground water.
(iii) Uttar Pradesh alone accounts for 19 percent ground water potential.
(iv) About 42 percent of the ground water potential are confined to the states of Punjab, Haryana, Bihar and West Bengal.
(v) In the peninsular India, groundwater potential is less or negligible because of rocky land surface.
(vi) Only 37.23 percent of the available ground water resources have so far been developed in India.
