Government of Tamil Nadu issues guidelines for private participation in restoration of water bodies

The state government on Wednesday issued guidelines to facilitate restoration of water bodies through partnerships with private entities, including voluntary organisations, industries and educational institutions. The initiative seeks to support the government’s rejuvenation efforts by leveraging private participation in the protection of water bodies.

Rural Development and Water Resources Minister N. Anand issued the instructions in the city on Wednesday. There are 22,051 minor irrigation tanks and 69,777 ponds and village tanks under the Rural Development Department and Panchayat Raj. While the restoration of water bodies has taken place through various government programs, the storage capacity of a significant number of water bodies has not been fully restored and therefore additional conservation measures are necessary.

To complement the government’s efforts, the directive seeks to use corporate social responsibility funds along with the participation of non-governmental organizations and educational institutions to protect water bodies, the press release said.

The guidelines specified the categories of work, including vegetation clearing, bank strengthening and silt removal (vandal man), which could be awarded for private partnership projects. A water user association may also have permission to remove alluvial soil from water bodies.

The guidelines also specified detailed arrangements for carrying out various types of work, including completing the project within three months of signing the MoU. The steps to prepare a detailed project report for the removal of alluvial soil and the technical standards to be followed during the execution of the works have been specified.

In addition to emphasizing monitoring and quality control, the guidelines also detail procedures for using excavated soil from water bodies, the report said.

Published – 02 Jul 2026 07:25 IST