Wakal River

The Wakal River flows through the Indian states of Rajasthan and Gujarat. It is a tributary of the Sabarmati River, one of India’s major west-flowing rivers, which originates in the Aravalli Range.

The Wakal River originates in the Aravalli Range of Rajasthan’s Udaipur district and flows for approximately 158 kilometres before merging with the Sabarmati River in Gujarat’s Sabarkantha district. Its two principal tributaries are the Mansi and Parvi rivers. The Mansi River is particularly known for the Mansi Wakal Dam, which has been constructed across it in Udaipur district.

The Wakal River watershed covers an area of approximately 1,851 square kilometres, extending across Udaipur district in Rajasthan and Sabarkantha district in Gujarat. About 98% of the basin area lies within Rajasthan, while the remaining 2% is situated in Gujarat. The basin has a mean annual surface water yield of approximately 319.4 million cubic metres.

The Wakal River watershed has 24 minor irrigation projects with a combined live storage capacity of approximately 65.98 million cubic metres. Among the various water infrastructure projects in the basin, the Mansi Wakal Dam is the largest dam and plays an important role in the region’s water management and irrigation system. 

Located approximately 7 kilometres north of Jhadol village, the Mansi Wakal Dam forms a reservoir with a storage capacity of about 24.4 million cubic metres. The reservoir primarily supplies drinking water to Udaipur city, contributing around 23% of its drinking water requirement. It also provides drinking water to rural areas of Udaipur district and supports industrial water needs.

Rajasthan, located in north-western India, is one of the country’s driest and most economically disadvantaged regions. Wakal River Basin is located in the southern part of Rajasthan where Thar Desert covers much of the area. This region experiences extreme temperatures and receives very little annual rainfall. Surface water resources are limited because rainfall rapidly infiltrates the ground, while high evaporation rates further reduce water availability. 

The Wakal River region also faces significant water-supply challenges due to historical mismanagement of water resources. Excessive irrigation has contributed to waterlogging and soil salinisation, while the unregulated extraction of groundwater through pumps has depleted aquifers, lowered water tables, and caused wells to dry up. Limited coordination in water management has also compounded the problem, as access to wells is often controlled by individual households and villages. Unregulated water use has reduced the natural recharge of groundwater sources, making water scarcity an increasingly serious concern in the region.

The Wakal River Basin Project, located in southern Rajasthan, was supported by funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Global Water for Sustainability Program between 2004 and 2014. The initiative focused on improving water security by involving local communities in water-resource management. 

The project aimed to increase water availability and storage through locally adapted solutions while raising community awareness about sustainable water management practices. Local communities played an active role throughout the initiative and were responsible for establishing and maintaining the water-management schemes. 

The Wakal River Basin Project has promoted rainwater harvesting as a means of increasing water availability in local villages. One of the key measures involves the construction of taankas, or underground storage tanks, which collect and store rainwater harvested from rooftops. The project has also supported the development of joheds, small earthen dams that capture rainwater and have helped raise the groundwater table by up to 6 metres. 

In addition, pats, or irrigation canals, have been developed to channel water stored by joheds to agricultural fields for crop irrigation. Education and community awareness form an important part of the project, with local communities being encouraged to understand and practice water conservation. This collective participation helps strengthen long-term water security in the region.