India’s urban planners normally see excessive extraction of groundwater as mainly a water supply-related problem. The other problem arising out of it, subsidence of land, is not given the importance it deserves. A recent study published in the journal Nature Sustainability has turned the spotlight on this creeping hazard in five of India’s largest cities.

Using satellite data covering more than 13 million structures, the study assessed risks posed to buildings, infrastructure, and populations in five Indian cities: the New Delhi National Capital Region, Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Bengaluru. It found that 878 square km of urban land in these cities is subsiding, mainly due to overextraction of groundwater. The maximum rate of subsidence was recorded in New Delhi (sinking 51.0 mm per yea

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