Rapid growth in groundwater use is a central aspect of the world’s water story. Shallow wells and muscle-driven lifting devices have been used in many parts of the world for centuries. In British India (which today includes Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan), shallow wells accounted for more than 30 percent of irrigated land as early as 1903, when only 14 percent of the cropped area was irrigated1. Groundwater is also the principal source of domestic water in towns and villages. The groundwater footprint of towns and cities increases directly with increasing population density until a threshold is reached beyond which cities are obliged to source water from distant reservoirs and aquifers. However, agriculture is by far the largest user of groundwater and as towns and cities grow, agriculture will be expected to release groundwater for servicing urban demand and other high-value uses. Agriculture will have to produce more food, fibre, and livelihoods with less water and so the future challenge will be to step up agricultural groundwater productivity.