Rainwater Harvesting

Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is a simple method by which rainfall is collected for future usage. The collected rainwater may be stored, utilised in different ways or directly used for recharge purposes. With depleting groundwater levels and fluctuating climate conditions, RWH can go a long way to help mitigate these effects. Capturing the rainwater can help recharge local aquifers, reduce urban flooding and most importantly ensure water availability in water-scarce zones. Though the term seems to have picked up greater visibility in the last few years, it was, and is even today, a traditional practice followed in rural India. Some ancient rainwater harvesting methods followed in India include madakas, ahar pynes, surangas, taankas and many more.

This water conservation method can be easily practiced in individual homes, apartments, parks, offices and temples too, across the world. Farmers have recharged their dry borewells, created water banks in drought areas, greened their farms, increased sustainability of their water resources and even created a river. Technical know how for the rooftop RWH with direct storage can be availed for better implementation. RWH An effective method in water scarce times, it is also an easily doable practice. Practical advice is available in books written by Indukanth Ragade & Shree Padre, talks by Anupam Mishra and other easy to follow fun ways

Read our FAQ on Rainwater Harvesting and have many basic questions answered.

Term Path Alias

/topics/rainwater-harvesting

Featured Articles
September 21, 2022 The unique design and functioning of the Chakla bavdi in Chanderi Madhya Pradesh is another example of the water wisdom of our ancestors, which needs to be conserved and passed on to the future generations.
Chakla Bavdi at Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh (Image Source: Shirole, S. 2022. Architectural eloquence: Water harvesting structure in Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh (India). Ancient Asia, 13: 9, pp. 1–13)
July 14, 2022 The river is faced with the dual problem of flood plain encroachment and growing levels of water pollution
Illegal transverse check dams (Badhals) built on Ichamati near a village in Basirhat (Image: Prithviraj Nath @ TheWaterChronicles)
July 11, 2022 The Chauka system of Rajasthan can not only provide a sustainable way to manage water resources in water stressed regions, but also support livelihoods through development of pastures.
Can greening of barren lands happen? (Image Source: India Water Portal Flickr photos)
March 21, 2022 Recognizing women's accumulated knowledge and adaptive capacities in springshed management
Van Panchayat Samiti discussing the matters related to forest (Image: Varun Raja)
November 9, 2021 Building resilient agricultural system through groundwater management interventions in degraded landscapes of Bundelkhand region
Charkhari talab in Bundelkhand (Image: IWP Flickr)
Speakers and presentations of WHSC 2009 day 3 : Ashok Jaitly talks about the policy issues on water conservation
WHSC 2009- Discussions and presentations by various speakers on water policy, rainwater harvesting techniques and Sulabh experience in sanitation Posted on 26 Nov, 2009 03:58 AM

Ashok Jaitly, Water Resources Department, TERI
Policy issues in water conservation

Habil Attarwala, Furaat Earth Ltd., Gujarat

Recommendations of the Working Group meeting on technological issues related to groundwater - Day 2
The Working Group Meeting setup for the day, arrived at its list of technological issues to be addressed, and their recommendations Posted on 26 Nov, 2009 03:32 AM

Attending today's technology sessions, I couldn't help thinking about what Carl Sagan once remarked about science and technology. He noted,

Case presentation on what works in Rain Water Harvesting ( RWH)
Cases presented by speakers from their regions of work, in the field of rainwater harvesting Posted on 25 Nov, 2009 06:15 AM

Observing water harvesting from many different geographies, demographies and cultural setups, we have different approaches emerging to address the situation! The following are the cases presented by the speakers from their regions of work, who have come to understand and identify what works in RWH.

Decision tree based approach to water : A presentation by Durjoy Chakraborty
A decision tree based approach for water projectcs Posted on 25 Nov, 2009 04:55 AM

On technology and policy, on what works and what doesn't, on what should work and what can be scaled up... there have been numerous approaches and methodologies presented here at WHSC. That too, with a good number of case studies, substatiating the effectiveness of the chosen approach. Planning at micro and macro levels too, have been deliberated upon.

Traditional techniques of water management - Interesting cases presented by Farhad Contractor & Rajendra Singh
A discussion on water harvesting and conservation, traditional water management systems that have existed over centuries, in India. Posted on 24 Nov, 2009 09:58 PM

Rajendra Singh of Tarun Bharat Sangh and Farhad Contractor of Sambhaav Trust, had

Speakers and presentations of the WHSC 2009 Day 2 : Rajendra Singh emphasises the need for decentralized water management
A compilation of presentations during the WHSC 2009 Posted on 24 Nov, 2009 05:11 AM

Rajendra Singh

 

 

Recommendations of Working Group meeting - Planning and implementation issues related to Rain Water Harvesting(RWH)
Issues related to planning and implementation largely concerned with water quality, budgeting and equity. Posted on 24 Nov, 2009 04:12 AM

The issues related to planning and implementation were largely concerned with water quality, budgeting and equity.

The group deemed it necessary that the following are addressed on a greater priority:

  1. Centralized vs. decentralized rainwater harvesting
  2. Water quality aspects in rainwater harvesting system
  3. Water quality management through rainwater harvesting
Recommendations of Working Group meeting on policy issues- Water harvesting issues
Identification of the main issues in water harvesting and its recommendations Posted on 24 Nov, 2009 03:37 AM

Working Group Meetings formed by a panel of experts in the respective field, formed a significant aspect of WHSC Conference. The conference is geared towards effecting a change in the way water resources are governed and managed. Towards this, the working group meeting's recommendations were valuable, and awaited.

 

Storm water management and artificial recharge - A talk by Dr.S.K.Jain
An interesting talk on 'Storm water management, artificial recharge and improvement in ground water regime' Posted on 24 Nov, 2009 12:16 AM

All these decades from early twentieth century, storm water and artificial recharge of aquifers have seldom been an area of consideration for planners and policy makers. The country appeared to be oblivious to the fact that these too are integral part of the resources that we need to take care of before it starts hitting back at us in our daily lives!

Case presentation by Bharat Sharma on water crisis and nationwide water harvesting initiative
A case for a larger perspective on the water crisis and for a Nationwide Water Harvesting Initiative Posted on 23 Nov, 2009 08:09 PM

Bharat2

Bharat Sharma (Photo:Praveena Sridhar)

×