| Abstract: |
Climate change has significantly reshaped the dynamics of groundwater in the Upper Ganga Plain, and the Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh is an interesting place to study urban-rural differentials, as it is a place of intensive sugarcane agriculture alongside the rapid urbanisation. This paper examines the relationship between changes in rainfall, temperature and anthropogenic pressure, and their comparison and contrast in terms of groundwater depletion and contamination in the urban and rural blocks of Meerut. A compilation and analysis of secondary data were based on descriptive and comparative statistical methods, which covered 2003-2025 period and included Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), India Meteorological Department (IMD), GRACE satellite and peer-reviewed literature in the context of the study. The hypothesis is that urban blocks in Meerut have a considerable difference in ground water depletion and contamination in comparison with rural blocks of the same climatic stress. The findings indicate that urban Meerut experiences a depletion of 0.12-0.33 m/year with high levels of nitrate and fluoride surplus and rural blocks with relatively low declines with moderation by the canal recharge. Increasing temperature (+0.6 C decadal) and unpredictable intensity of monsoon have added pressure. The paper concludes that artificial recharge, crop diversification, and demand-side pricing should be integrated and block specific to achieve climate-resilient water security in Meerut. |
