India is facing a severe water crisis, further intensified by the impacts of climate change. This crisis poses significant threats to livelihoods, public health, ecosystems, and the economy while escalating conflicts over water resources. A key issue contributing to this challenge is the inequitable distribution of water, where larger farmers often monopolize resources, leaving marginalized and landless individuals at a disadvantage.

Atpadi Tehsil in Maharashtra, located in a drought-prone region within a rain shadow area, is an example of these challenges. With limited rainfall and frequent droughts, the region faces persistent water access issues. Despite these hardships, Atpadi serves as the site of an innovative experiment in equitable water sharing, led by Shramik Mukti Dal Pani Sangharsh Chalwal (SMDPSC) and Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management (SOPPECOM) in collaboration with local Water User Associations (WUAs). Their unique model integrates local water resources with imported water from the Tembhu Lift Irrigation Scheme to meet livelihood needs. Unlike traditional canal irrigation systems that allocate water based on cultivated land area, this model ensures equitable distribution on a per-person basis, guaranteeing even landless individuals receive their fair share for a sustainable livelihood.

Achieving equity in water access and distribution requires detailed technical and scientific data that is often unavailable or difficult to access without advanced expertise. Recent advancements in hydrology, agriculture, and technologies like remote sensing, GIS, and artificial intelligence provide new opportunities to generate the necessary data. This proposed action-oriented research aims to address these gaps by supporting SMDPSC, SOPPECOM, and local WUAs in establishing equitable water distribution in Atpadi Taluka.  The project’s objective is to:

• Identify areas with inequitable water access.
• Analyse current water usage and land use practices.
• Assess local and imported water resource availability.
• Formulate an equitable water distribution plan.
• Develop CDT-Water, a decision-support tool for equitable water management.