Traditional water bodies called tanks were built mainly for catering to the irrigation and drinking needs of the village communities. Until 1950-51, they played a significant role in helping the rural economies. Over the years, they have lost their significance due to a variety of reasons. Although many factors have contributed to the dysfunctional conditions of the tanks, the encroachments upon foreshore/waterspread area have played a major role in making the tanks non-viable. This paper focuses on this issue covering aspects like extent of encroachment, encroacher’s background, reasons for encroachment, consequences of encroachment and remedial measures for the eviction and prevention of encroachments. The primary data collected from the encroachers in respect of 47 tanks spread over in 11 districts, 8 Agro Climatic Zones and 17 taluks of the state of Karnataka have been used for analysing these aspects.