Reclamation of Saline Agricultural Land

Abstract

Abstract: The sustainability of (irrigated) agriculture in India is threatened by waterlogging, soil salinity, and alkalinity. To reverse declining agricultural productivity, a combination of surface and subsurface drainage, supplemented by improved irrigation management, has been identified as the most appropriate strategy. But subsurface drainage for salinity control is costly. Therefore, its sustained agricultural production benefits must be thoroughly investigated to establish its technoeconomic feasibility. The present study attempts to do this by analysing the cost of installing subsurface drainage, the direct onfarm benefits of subsurface drainage, and the financial feasibility of subsurface drainage. The study site selected for this study is Uran Islampur (Maharashtra State). The results say land use will intensify if drainage is installed because a sizeable area of formerly fallow land was brought under cultivation. It also says that the cropping pattern will be changed in favour of more remunerative crops, and crop yields will increase. These immediate gains from drainage are helping to increase land productivity, gainful employment of the farmers and, hence, farm income. The financial and economic feasibility of drainage in waterlogged and saline areas looks favourable, provided that sufficient water is available for leaching and irrigation and that a sustainable solution for the disposal of the low-quality drainage effluent is found. Concerning the latter, creating ponds to store drainage effluent temporarily is technically possible while not threatening the financial feasibility of the investment in drainage.