Alwar district, Rajasthan, India
#00198
Case study of
#00193 Revive traditional rainwater-harvesting and recharge structures through village labor and ownership
Implementer
Tarun Bharat Sangh (TBS) with village communities; led by Rajendra Singh
Timeline
Since Jan 1, 1985
Location
Description
Since 1985, Tarun Bharat Sangh facilitated village-built earthen recharge ponds (johads) across Alwar district, Rajasthan. The model requires 25–33% village labor/cash contribution per structure to anchor ownership. Typical johad cost was Rs 30,000–100,000. The independent Sida evaluation (2003) examined 576 structures and confirmed groundwater recovery, expansion of Rabi (winter) cropping, and reduced distress migration, while also documenting maintenance decay on many structures, disproportionate benefit capture by wealthier farmers, and failure of the Arvari River Parliament's extraction rules because private wells escape communal control.
Metrics
3Funding
Lessons learned
- A 25–33% village contribution per johad anchored ownership but did not prevent maintenance decay on many structures over time — replication needs explicit maintenance institutions, not just co-financing.
- Recharge without enforceable extraction rules is partially self-defeating: the Arvari River Parliament's demand rules were ignored because private wells fall outside communal jurisdiction, so recharge enabled re-extraction.
- Benefits accrued disproportionately to wealthier farmers with more land and deeper wells; equitable outcomes require explicit design rules, not just communal construction.
- Independent evaluation (576 structures, Sida 2003) confirmed real but uneven gains at village scale — aggregate promoter figures (11,800 water bodies) were not independently verified and should not be used as replication benchmarks.
Documented Jul 24, 2026