Water Crisis to Water Security: The Art of Living's Scalable Model for a Water Positive India

BENGALURU, India, Aug. 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Water is India's lifeline - and its looming crisis. With 80% of the country's water needs met through fast-depleting groundwater, and erratic monsoons failing to replenish rivers and reservoirs, the threat of widespread water insecurity is real. But while the crisis is vast, so is the opportunity to reverse it.

Leading that reversal is The Art of Living Social Projects, under the guidance of spiritual leader and humanitarian Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Today, it stands as one of India's largest and most community-driven water conservation movements - scientific, replicable, and deeply rooted in the land.

Beyond Projects: A Nationwide Water Movement

Across eight states - including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Telangana, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh - The Art of Living Social Projects has implemented water conservation work that's both massive and measurable.

As of August 2025:

• 72 Rivers, streams and their tributaries being rejuvenated across 8 States 
• 1,74,52+ Crore litres of water conserved
• 3,45,00,000+ People impacted
• 20,000+ Villages benefitted
• 1,05,050+ Recharge structures constructed 
• 2,90,64,668+ Cubic metres desilted 
• 59,000+ Sq km influenced 
• 7,00,000+ Trees planted along river basins in River Rejuvenation Projects

These numbers aren't just data points - they tell stories of water replenished, farms revived, and communities empowered.

A Scalable Model, Rooted in Science

The organisation's water conservation project ideas begin with understanding the terrain - using GIS mapping, satellite data, and hydrogeological studies to design region-specific solutions. Each project adopts a ridge-to-valley strategy, ensuring rainwater is captured where it falls, slowed, and allowed to percolate into the earth.

Structures such as check dams, contour trenches, and recharge pits play a vital role in restoring groundwater levels. In the Vedavathi river basin of Karnataka, over 17,200 recharge structures have been built and more than 12,000 trees planted - benefitting over 91,98,300 citizens.

The impact of the water conservation project in Maharashtra is equally remarkable: more than 57,000 JalTara structures constructed, 3,01,14,668+ cubic metres of silt removed, and 7,28,900+ trees planted - empowering over 20,75,000 people.

Project JalTara: A Farm-Level Gamechanger

The JalTara initiative has emerged as a breakthrough model for rural water security and agricultural resilience. The concept is simple: dig a recharge pit at the lowest point of each farm plot, plant two trees nearby, and let nature do the rest. So far, large-scale implementation across Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana has included:

• 60,090+ recharge structures constructed
• 2,01,200+ acres of farmland covered
• 1,00,000+ trees planted

These efforts are laying a strong foundation for long-term groundwater recharge, improved soil moisture, and increased farm productivity - positioning JalTara as a truly transformative solution. This impact is already visible on the ground.

In Mauda, Maharashtra, where the initiative has been widely implemented, groundwater levels have risen by 3 metres, crop productivity has increased by 39%, and farmer incomes have grown by 68%.

Women, Youth, and Communities Lead the Way

Led by women, youth, and local communities, this is not a top-down initiative. From planning to execution and monitoring; ownership rests with the people. In Tamil Nadu, over 44,000 women led the revival of the Naganadhi river - the flow has been continuous for more than three years, after decades of seasonal drying.

Through the Youth Leadership Training Program (YLTP), young people are trained in water literacy, community mobilisation, and sustainable practices. In Uttar Pradesh alone over 16,962+ people have attended Water Literacy Programmes.

Tailored to Terrain, Adaptable Across India

From pond revitalisation in Punjab to groundwater recharge planning in Haryana, and scientific surveys of the Betwa basin in Madhya Pradesh; The Art of Living Social Projects ensures solutions are tailored to local needs - while remaining part of a larger, unified vision.

This blend of local ownership, technical expertise, and spiritual inspiration is what makes the model not just successful, but scalable.

A Blueprint for a Water-Positive Future

As India stares at the challenge of water scarcity, The Art of Living Social Projects offers a working model. One that combines the power of technology, ecology, and people's participation.

With more than 1,74,52 crore litres of water already conserved, and momentum gathering, this may be India's true watershed moment - not just in hydrology, but in human resolve.

Now is the time to build on this success. Support the movement. https://waterconservation.artofliving.org/donate-now.php 

Together, to make scarcity history.

About The Art of Living Social Projects:

The Art of Living, a non-profit, educational, and humanitarian organisation founded in 1981 by the world-renowned humanitarian and spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. The organisation works closely with the Government of India and Corporate Entities to relieve the country from water scarcity through various water conservation projects.

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