Gaya's Water Crisis: Supreme Court Restoration Order Remains Unimplemented
In the historic district of Gaya, Bihar, all promises to restore and reclaim nearly 800 extinct water bodies have proven to be empty rhetoric with minimal tangible action on the ground. Alarmingly, even the surviving water bodies now face severe threats as they are increasingly targeted by real estate developers and various vested interests seeking to exploit these valuable land resources.
The Supreme Court Mandate and Historical Context
In January 2011, the Supreme Court of India issued a landmark order mandating nationwide restoration and reclamation of water bodies for environmental protection and related purposes. Following this directive, C Ashok Vardhan, then principal secretary of Bihar's revenue and land reforms department, issued an official notification for compliance with the Supreme Court's water body restoration order.
Historical records from the 1914 cadastral survey reveal that Gaya district once boasted 1,731 water bodies covering one acre or more. Beyond these substantial water features, the district also contained approximately 36,000 ground wells, both public and private, that served local communities for generations.
Alarming Disappearance of Water Resources
According to informed estimates, more than 50% of Gaya's water bodies, predominantly ponds, have now become completely extinct. The situation with wells is even more dire, with nearly 75% of these traditional water sources no longer existing at all. This dramatic loss represents a significant environmental and social crisis for the region.
The Rasalpur Talab, originally spanning 10 acres, has shrunk to merely six acres due to significant encroachment and neglect. This deterioration prompted Ramon Magsaysay Award-winning water activist Rajendra Singh to visit Gaya specifically to highlight the precarious condition of local water bodies, with particular focus on the Rasalpur Talab. Singh even offered to adopt and rehabilitate this important water body.
Government Complicity in Water Body Destruction
Perhaps most surprisingly, government authorities themselves have contributed to the destruction of water bodies. In one particularly egregious case, the government constructed the divisional commissioner's office on plot number 13392, which according to the 1914 survey was actually a pond known as North Dighi Talab.
Based on this documented fact, RTI activist Brijnandan Pathak petitioned then divisional commissioner Jitendra Srivastava several years ago, demanding demolition of the office premises built on what was historically a water body. The divisional commissioner subsequently dismissed the petition in his quasi-judicial capacity, arguing that the petitioner lacked proper standing in the matter.
Urban Encroachment and Failed Restoration Efforts
While water bodies throughout Gaya district have faced extinction due to encroachments and inadequate maintenance, the situation is particularly severe within the Gaya Municipal Corporation area. Iconic water bodies including Kathokar Talab, North Dighi Talab, Baniya Pokhar, Gangti Pokhar, and Koili Pokhar have completely vanished, replaced over time by concrete structures and urban development.
In 2019, then district magistrate Abhishek Singh assigned the Gaya Municipal Corporation the responsibility of taking effective steps to restore extinct water bodies and properly maintain the few surviving ones within the municipal area. However, little progress appears to have been made since this directive.
Expert Analysis and Administrative Inaction
Rai Madan Kishore, retired special secretary of the Bihar government, emphasizes that restoring extinct water bodies requires exceptionally strong political and administrative will. At minimum, Kishore argues, effective measures must be implemented to protect and preserve the water bodies that still survive in Gaya district.
When sought for comment on current steps being taken to comply with the Supreme Court's water body restoration order, deputy development commissioner Shailesh Kumar Das was unavailable to provide any update on government initiatives or progress.
The continued disappearance of Gaya's water bodies represents not just an environmental crisis but a failure of governance and implementation of judicial directives. Without immediate and decisive action, the district risks losing its remaining water heritage entirely to unchecked development and administrative neglect.
