Eight Hyderabad areas over-exploit groundwater, 7 turn critical

In Hyderabad district, groundwater extraction has already exceeded the annual available resource.

Hyderabad: Hyderabad and its surrounding urban districts are facing growing groundwater stress as nearly 70 per cent of their annual groundwater resources have already been extracted.

According to the 2025-26 India-Groundwater Resource Estimation System (IN-GRES) assessment, the Core Urban Region (CURE), which includes Hyderabad, Rangareddy and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts, has extracted around 48,000 hectare-metres (ham) of groundwater from an annual available resource of 72,000 ham.

In Hyderabad district, groundwater extraction has already exceeded the annual available resource. Of the district’s 16 groundwater assessment units, 15 are classified as critical or over-exploited.

Eight Hyderabad areas over-exploit groundwater

In Hyderabad, eight areas, Amberpet, Ameerpet, Asifnagar, Charminar, Golconda, Himayatnagar, Khairatabad and Saidabad, have been classified as over-exploited.

Seven other areas fall under the critical category. They are Bahadurpura, Bandlaguda, Maredpally, Musheerabad, Nampally, Secunderabad and Shaikpet.

An assessment unit is classified as critical when extraction reaches 90-100 per cent of its annual extractable groundwater resource. When extraction crosses 100 per cent, it is categorised as over-exploited.

In 2024-25, 11 assessment units in Hyderabad were classified as critical or over-exploited.

A report in The Times of India quoted an official from the Telangana groundwater department saying that residential, commercial and industrial activities were driving heavy groundwater extraction.

Borewell dependence increased

As municipal water meets only around 30 per cent of Hyderabad’s water demand, households, businesses and industries are heavily dependent on borewells.

While the Hyderabad metropolitan region accounts for nearly one-third of Telangana’s population, it has access to only around 3 per cent of the state’s annual groundwater resources.

Telangana has approximately 21 lakh ham of annual extractable groundwater resources. Out of this, CURE has just 72,000 ham.

Excessive extraction is only one part of Hyderabad’s groundwater problem. The city also faces challenges in replenishing the water taken from underground reserves.

Rapid urbanisation and widespread concretisation have reduced groundwater recharge due to reduced open land through which rainwater can seep into the soil.