Borewell Rules, Regulations, Permission and guidelines in Andhra Pradesh

The Mission:
NAVARATNALU is a government initiative aimed at enhancing delivery systems and improving the quality of governance in the State. Its primary goal is to elevate the living standards of the people. Among the nine welfare schemes proposed by the State Government under NAVARATNALU, the “YSR Rythu Bharosa – Free Borewells” scheme focuses on utilizing the available groundwater resources to uplift the livelihoods of farmers and contribute to the growth of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) in the primary sector.

Objective:
The government has made the decision to provide free bore-wells to small and marginal farmers across all thirteen districts of the State. The objective is to maximize the use of groundwater resources for irrigating every arable acre of land. Before commencing the drilling activity, integrated hydrogeological and geophysical surveys will be conducted in the field to identify feasible sites for bore-wells. This ensures that the drilling process is carried out efficiently and effectively.

Procedure Agriculture Borewells:
Eligibility Criteria:
1. Any farmer with land up to 5 acres, without existing bore-wells, tube-wells, or open wells, is eligible.
2. The farmer should possess contiguous land of a minimum of 2.5 acres.
3. If a farmer doesn’t have at least 2.5 acres of contiguous land, a group of farmers with a combined contiguous land of 2.5 to 5 acres can be considered eligible, and the facility will be shared among the group.
4. The farmer’s land should not be located in any of the 1094 over-exploited revenue villages as notified by the Government.

Application Process:
1. The eligible beneficiary must submit a filled-in application along with a copy of the Pattadar passbook and Aadhar card at the village secretariat or online.
2. The applications will be scrutinized at the village secretariat by the Village Revenue Officer (VRO) after field verification by the Panchayat Secretary. The list of eligible beneficiaries will be sent to the concerned Mandal Parishad Development Officer (MPDO).
3. The MPDO will submit a consolidated list of applications from all gram panchayats to the Project Director (PD) of District Water Management Agency (DWMA) for further processing.

Feasibility of Bore-well:
1. The PD of DWMA will forward the applications to the drilling contractor of the respective parliamentary constituency for integrated hydrogeological and geophysical surveys.
2. The drilling contractor will engage a Geologist/Geophysicist from the Groundwater & Water Audit department or any qualified registered professional to locate feasible drilling sites on the beneficiaries’ lands.
3. The selection of feasible sites will adhere to the Andhra Pradesh Water, Land, and Trees Act, 2002 (APWALTA) norms and relevant government orders.
4. The drilling contractor will submit a list of feasible sites along with the integrated hydrogeological and geophysical survey reports to the PD of DWMA. Technical advice can be sought from the District-level Groundwater Department if necessary.

Sanction of Scheme:
1. The PD of DWMA will prepare a list of eligible beneficiaries based on the feasible sites identified by the contractor for bore-well construction.
2. The PD of DWMA will communicate the list of eligible beneficiaries and survey reports to the respective Assistant Project Director (APD) of DWMA to generate cost estimates for bore-well construction.
3. The APD of DWMA will send the estimates to the PD of DWMA for administrative sanction by the District Collector.
4. The PD of DWMA will submit the list of eligible beneficiaries and estimates to the District Collector for administrative sanction of the scheme.

Communication of Approved Sanction:
1. The PD of DWMA will inform the village secretariats, through the MPDO, about the sanctioned list of beneficiaries, with intimation to the APD of DWMA.
2. The beneficiaries will be notified about the bore-well sanction through SMS.
3. The PD of DWMA will send a copy of the approved sanction to the drilling contractor of the respective parliamentary constituency to commence drilling.

Drilling of Bore-wells:
1. After receiving confirmation and approved sanction from the PD of DWMA, the contractor will construct the bore-well/tube-well at the recommended location, informing the APD of DWMA to depute staff for inspection and yield testing.
2. A successful bore-well should have a minimum yield of 1000 GPH (4500 liters per hour) by the 900 ‘V’ notch method.
3. Yield testing will be conducted in the presence of the concerned authorities, and a minimum yield of 100 GPH by the 900 ‘V’ notch method is required.
4. Digital photographs with geo-tags will be taken by the authorized authorities in the presence of the contractor and beneficiaries upon completion of bore-well drilling. These photographs, along with relevant documents and beneficiary signatures, will be submitted to the APD of DWMA.
5. The depth of the drilled bore-well and casing will be measured and recorded in the Measurement Book by the designated authorities in the presence of the contractor and beneficiaries.
6. The concerned officer will submit the bore-well completion report, including photographs, relevant documents, and beneficiary and authority signatures, to the APD of DWMA.
7. A 10% sample of the drilled bore-wells will be checked by the APD of DWMA before making payments.
8. Payments will be made based on verified measurements and invoices on a pro-rata basis, considering the success criteria. Only the percentage of successful bore-wells according to the success rate for each parliamentary constituency will be considered for payment.
9. The APD of DWMA will generate Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) for the drilled bore-wells, as per the contract conditions with the drilling contractors.
10. All bore-wells, both failed and successful, will be geo-tagged by the authorized authorities in the presence of the contractor and beneficiary.
11. In case of bore-well failure, the contractor will refill the bore-well with soil and stone pieces before shifting the rig, which will be monitored and ensured by the APD of DWMA.

Post Drilling:
1. Details of the drilled bore-wells, including completion reports, lists and locations of successful and failed bore-wells, will be documented and maintained by the concerned APD of DWMA.
2. Construction of recharge pits or water harvesting structures at successful bore-well sites will be mandatory and monitored by the PD of DWMA.
3. Social audits will be conducted for all bore-wells drilled under this program.
4. The Commissioner of Panchayat Raj and Rural Development will take further necessary actions accordingly.

Procedure for Registering Tube Wells or Bore Wells
Apply In-Person:
1. Visit the Municipal Corporation/Village Panchayat office in your area. You can find the address and contact details on the respective websites:

● Central Ground Water Board: [Contact Link](provide the link)
● Andhra Pradesh Water Supply Board: [Contact Link](provide the link)
● Municipal Corporation address: [Municipal Corporation Link](provide the link, select the district and block for address)
● Village Panchayat address: [Village Panchayat Link](provide the link, select the district and block for address)
2. Obtain the application form for the Registration of Tube Wells or Bore Wells from the relevant department at the office.
3. Fill out the application form with accurate and essential information. Make sure to sign the form where required.
4. Attach all the required documents listed in the “Required Documents” section of the application form.
5. Submit the completed application form and attached documents to the relevant authority at the office. Pay the prescribed fees as directed by the officials. Collect the acknowledgement slip for the paid fee and keep it safe for future reference.
6. The application and documents will undergo a verification process to check for any discrepancies.
7. Once the verification process is completed, and the application is approved by the concerned officials, the registration process will proceed. This process may take up to 30 days.
8. When the registration document is ready for collection, the office will contact you at the provided address. You can collect the document in person or through any applicable means.

Apply Online:
1. Visit the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) website: [CGWA website Link]
2. On the homepage, click on “Online Application for NOC.”
3. Select “New User Registration” and complete the User Registration Form.
4. During the registration process, you will receive an OTP (One Time Password) on your mobile for verification. Enter the OTP to verify your mobile number.
5. Fill in the remaining information on the page and click “Proceed” to complete the registration.
6. Return to the homepage and click on “Applicant Login.” Enter your User Name and password, then click “Login.”
7. After logging in, click on “Apply” and choose one of the “New Application forms for Industrial/Infrastructure/Mining application” options.
8. Fill out all the sections of the form and click “Save as Draft” for each section.
9. Upload the required documents in their respective tabs. Ensure that the scanned copy of the application with your signature and seal is attached before final submission.
10. Click on “Submit” on the “Final Submit” form. After successful submission, an application number will be generated.
11. The application will be automatically forwarded to the respective offices. There is no need to send a hard copy of the application.
12. To track the status of your application, use the “Track your Application” link on the homepage. Select “View” in the Status column for the relevant application number to check its status.

Eligibility:
Any person without an existing Tube well or Bore well can apply for registration.

Processing Time:
The registration process may take up to 30 days.

Instructions:
1. Ensure that the application form is filled with accurate information and all required fields are completed.
2. Submit the application to the concerned authority with all the required documents attached.
3. Pay the required amount for the application process at the office while submitting the application form.