Development Of Groundwater Irrigation Research Articles

Evaluation of the sustainability of groundwater irrigation development in Tejakula and Kubu Districts

The Sustainable Agricultural Irrigation Development Project in Buleleng and Karangasem (SDIABKA) is project activities aim to increase community access to irrigation infrastructure and facilities needed to support increased agricultural productivity and food subregional security in north-east Bali. Institutional developmentof tubwell users group (TUG) have been carried out which in turn will be able to support the management of efficient and sustainable groundwater irrigation facilities both economically and environmentally.It is very important to be known the sustainability of the project such as: Financial independence of the irrigation system, irrigation water supply, and the sustainability status. This valuable experience of developing groundwater irrigation is useful for lesson learned. The target population in this study is 24 SDIABKA TUGs. The TUGs located is in 9 villages in Tejakula and 3 villages in Kubu District.

Analyzing past and future trends in Pakistan's groundwater irrigation development: implications for environmental sustainability and food security.

Since the last four decades, groundwater irrigation has played a critical role in improving crop production and rural livelihoods. However, the flawed policies have allowed farmers to install private tube wells relentlessly, resulting in a slew of water quality and environmental issues. This study aims to investigate the key trends in temporal development of groundwater irrigation and its consequences in Pakistan. The dataset, which spanned 38years (1981 to 2018), included variables such as the number of tube wells, wheat area and production, farm size, total cultivated area, and total irrigated area in Punjab province. Our results show that, while the number of government-installed tube wells has decreased over time, the number of private tube wells has increased by 579% since 1981. About 85% of these privately owned tube wells are diesel tube wells, while the remaining 15% are electric tube wells. The ARDL regression results show that groundwater development, as a result of growth in private tube wells, has significantly aided wheat production in both the short and long run. However, the results of ARIMA model show that, in the absence of any regulatory mechanism to limit private tube well growth, the number of private tube wells in Punjab will increase by 43% over the next two decades, potentially jeopardizing the country's groundwater sustainability and food security. To ensure the sustainability of groundwater use, farmers' incomes, and the food security of the population, there is an urgent need to devise policy options to limit the growth of probate tube wells in the province. In addition, the new regulations should consider the equity implications and the economic shock to poor farms and households.

Groundwater irrigation reduces overall poverty but increases socioeconomic vulnerability in a semiarid region of southern India

The development of irrigation is generally considered an efficient way to reduce poverty in rural areas, although its impact on the inequality between farmers is more debated. In fact, assessing the impact of water management on different categories of farmers requires resituating it within the different dimensions of the local socio-technical context. We tested this hypothesis in a semi-arid area in Karnataka, South India, where groundwater irrigation was introduced five decades ago. Using the conceptual framework of comparative agriculture, based on farmers’ interviews, we built a farm typology, traced the trajectories of farm types over the last decades and assessed their current technical and economic performances. Our results show that the differentiation of farm trajectories since the 1950s has been linked with the development of groundwater irrigation, interplaying with their initial assets, and the evolution of the national and local contexts. We highlight the mechanisms by which irrigation indeed reduces poverty but engenders fragilities, particularly for poor households, whose situation was aggravated by the depletion of water resources over the last two decades. Finally, this extensive understanding of the agrarian context allowed us to formulate and assess the potential of different ways forward, including irrigation technology, change in cropping or livestock systems, land tenure, and value added distribution. As such, this analysis would be of major interest to policy makers involved in reforming the agricultural context for better agricultural water management.

The Impact of Groundwater Irrigation Development on Cropping Intensity and Crop Productivity in Krishnagiri District

Aims: The study is done with the objective of assessing the impact of groundwater irrigation development on cropping intensity and crop productivity in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu, India.
 Study Design: Purposive random sampling
 Place and Duration of Study: Krishnagiri district, Tamil Nadu, India during 2019-20.
 Methodology: The data on irrigation sources and area under various irrigation sources in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu and India is subjected to growth analysis using trend studies and CAGR (Compound Annual Growth rate) to study the ground water irrigation development. Whereas, regression analysis was done with the primary data collected from 120 farming households in Krishnagiri on agricultural land use and irrigation to study the impact of groundwater irrigation on cropping intensity and crop productivity.
 Results: As the net tube wells and other well irrigated area to net sown area (GWA) increases, there has been a corresponding increase in cropping intensity and crop productivity. The rise in percent of net tank and canal irrigated area to net sown area and percent of fertilizer applied area to net sown area have also increased cropping intensity and crop productivity whereas the increase in percent of net rainfed area to net sown area have decreased the cropping intensity and crop productivity.
 Conclusion: The ground water utilization through tube well construction have increased the cropping intensity and crop productivity.

Groundwater policies and irrigation development: a study of West Bengal, India, 1980–2016

ABSTRACT After a prolonged agrarian impasse, agricultural production in West Bengal, India, grew at an unprecedented rate in the 1980s, a process in which the expansion of groundwater irrigation played an important role. The growth of groundwater irrigation and agricultural production, however, decelerated from the early 1990s. This paper argues that the deceleration in groundwater irrigation development in West Bengal since 1995 is primarily attributed to the adoption of different regulatory policies in two ways: directly, through controlling the overall installation of tubewells or decelerating tubewell electrification; and indirectly, through high electricity pricing for water use in agriculture.

Development of Groundwater Irrigation in Telangana State: Challenges, Management and Way Forward

Groundwater based irrigation, which was started in India as early as “Indus Civilizations” got impetus during 3rd five-year plan. In India, at present 78 m ha of irrigation potential is created and 80 percent is utilized. One of the World’s highest user of groundwater is India with 63 percent of its dynamic groundwater resources. Similarly, Telangana State is also utilizing the dynamic groundwater resources up to 65 percent. Groundwater a reliable source of irrigation with high yields and brings equity among its users as ∼99 % of structures are owned by individuals. In the state, well irrigation increased from ∼0.46 lakh ha from 1875 to 23.35 lakh ha during 2017–18 and well density increased to ∼13 wells/km2 leading to decrease in irrigation potential under each well to < 1 ha. As a result of it many challenges like water logging & salinity in canal command areas, over-exploitation leading to de-saturation of shallow aquifers, underutilization in north eastern part, groundwater pollution (both geogenic and anthropogenic) and sustainability, etc have cropped up. The management steps taken up in water sector like water transfer through KLIP, providing protected water supply through Mission Bhagiratha, de-siltation through Mission Kakatiya, forest rejuvenation through Haritha Haram, construction of various ARS, modernization of canals, conjunctive use of surface and groundwater, user centred aquifer level groundwater management, tank management, IEC activities etc brought positive changes in water availability in the state more particularly surface water. In order to sustain these efforts, formation of WUA at watershed/village level for agricultural planning, change in cropping pattern from highly intensive paddy to ID crops more particularly from non-command areas, conjunctive use of water, warabandhi (on/off) method of releasing irrigation water, developing intercepting drains, soil treatment, declaring crop holidays, separate electric grids for agriculture and domestic supply, legally separating water and land rights and strict implementation of regulatory measures. The other measures suggested are policy interventions that involve regulatory mechanisms and linking village-based institutions to government departments that manage groundwater etc.

The key role of supply chain actors in groundwater irrigation development in North Africa

The role played by supply chain actors in the rapid development of groundwater-based irrigated agriculture is analyzed. Agricultural groundwater use has increased tremendously in the past 50 years, leading to the decline of water tables. Groundwater use has enabled intensification of existing farming systems and ensured economic growth. This “groundwater economy” has been growing rapidly due to the initiative of farmers and the involvement of a wide range of supply chain actors, including suppliers of equipment, inputs retailers, and distributors of irrigated agricultural products. In North Africa, the actors in irrigated production chains often operate at the margin of public policies and are usually described as “informal”, “unstructured”, and as participating in “groundwater anarchy”. This paper underlines the crucial role of supply chain actors in the development of groundwater irrigation, a role largely ignored by public policies and rarely studied. The analysis is based on three case studies in Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, and focuses on the horticultural sub-sector, in particular on onions and tomatoes, which are irrigated high value crops. The study demonstrates that although supply chain actors are catalyzers of the expansion of groundwater irrigation, they could also become actors in adaptation to the declining water tables. Through their informal activities, they help reduce market risks, facilitate credit and access to subsidies, and disseminate innovation. The interest associated with making these actors visible to agricultural institutions is discussed, along with methods of getting them involved in the management of the resource on which they depend.

Impact of groundwater and its implications on management of water resources in western Uttar Pradesh

An attempt has been made in the paper to examine the changes in resource use structure and returns in respect of crop production activity consequent upon the implementation of important basic ingredients in the transformation of agriculture. Since irrigation and modern crop production technology are strongly complementary to each other and together result in higher production, the policy makers and farmers, therefore have started giving more emphasis to the development of groundwater irrigation and modern water extraction mechanisms. The owner category realized relatively higher returns than that of buyers category, partly due to water extraction mechanisms, owners devoted proportionately more land under high value crop like sugarcane and partly due to better accessibility and reliability of irrigation water. Moreover, without the emergence of groundwater markets, a large traction of small and marginal farmers would have been deprived from the use of irrigation, the scarcity of groundwater especially in peak period of crop production invites special attention for better management of water resource, which will ensure higher return with future sustainability of agriculture. It may be accomplished that the emergence of water markets and water transaction benefits both sellers and buyers of groundwater.

Small pumps and poor farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa: an assessment of current extent of use and poverty outreach

The expansion of irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa has been slow. In Asia, the rapid expansion of smallholder irrigation systems was attributed in part to the availability and affordability of motorized pumps. This paper appraises the current extent of pump-based irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa; profiles the socio-economic and demographic attributes of current pump adopters; and assesses the poverty outreach of small-pump technology. It shows that private smallholder irrigation is practised mainly by the wealthier farmers. The development of groundwater irrigation requires targeted and deliberate public-policy interventions and institutional support focusing on the more marginal farmers.

Cost-benefit analysis and ideas for cost sharing of groundwater irrigation: evidence from north-eastern Ethiopia

The government of Ethiopia has invested in groundwater development for smallholder irrigation in the Raya Valley and Kobo Valley, north-eastern Ethiopia, where the hydrogeological potential is large but not fully developed. A cost-benefit analysis shows that investment in deep groundwater irrigation development is viable at a 9.5% discount rate in 75% of the wells. Assuming full cost recovery of capital investment, the annual payment rates (annuity) that irrigation users should pay over the wells’ service life (25 years) were estimated. It is recommended that future investment be based on cost sharing rather than full cost recovery to facilitate uptake and address financial realities.

Smallholder groundwater irrigation in sub-Saharan Africa: an interdisciplinary framework applied to the Usangu plains, Tanzania

A simple but comprehensive framework for analysing the potential for and constraints to groundwater development for irrigated agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is proposed. The framework, based on food value chain principles, is applied to the sub-Saharan context and a specific catchment in Tanzania, the Usangu plains, where groundwater has been proposed as a strategic resource for augmenting food production and smallholder livelihoods and to alleviate seasonal water scarcity. The novel contribution of the work is the presentation of a tool that can be applied to support an interdisciplinary approach to systematically identify most significant barriers and most critical water management and development interventions for sustainable development of groundwater irrigation. The result of the case study shows that farmer economics, capacity, and pump and well drilling market constraints limit groundwater irrigation in the Usangu plains rather than hydrogeological conditions.

India's groundwater irrigation boom: can it be sustained?

Development of groundwater irrigation (GWI) has been very impressive in India, especially after the introduction of the green revolution. The area under GWI accounts for 62% of the net irrigated area today. Though GWI provides added benefits to farmers, compared to other sources of irrigation, the continuous exploitation of groundwater of late has resulted in a drastic drop in the water table, and led to salinization and quality deterioration in different parts of the country. Since groundwater contributes overwhelmingly to agricultural growth, the unrestrained exploitation of groundwater could hamper the future growth of agriculture. GWI is controlled by many factors, which are dynamic and bound to change along with the agricultural development. Therefore, one needs to understand the factors determining groundwater development in different regions over time to understand the dynamics of groundwater use. Though many studies are available on different aspects of GWI in India, not many studies have looked at the sustainable aspects of GWI, considering the major States of India together. An attempt is made in this paper to study the development as well as the factors determining GWI over time, using state-wide data to suggest appropriate interventions to sustain the use of groundwater.

A study on the Development of Groundwater Irrigation and its Role in Dry-Zone, Sri Lanka

A study on the Development of Groundwater Irrigation and its Role in Dry-Zone, Sri Lanka

アメリカ合衆国ハイプレーンズにおける潅がい化と農業地域の変化 カンザス州南西部の事例

In the High Plains regions of the United States, once called the Great American Desert, productive farming regions were formed due to the introduction of center pivot irrigation systems since the 1960s. Finney county of Southwest Kansas, our study area, is one of the most productive farming regions in the High Plains, where irrigation has a long history. While windmills were built to take advantage of shallow ground water in the late nineteenth century, surface water became diverted from the Arkansas River by constructing irrigtion ditches beginning in the 1880s. Ditch irrigation was further promoted by the construction of sugar factory in Garden City in 1906 and the subsequent sugar beet cultivation mainly on the High Plains tablelands of the left bank of the Arkansas. On the other hand, introduction of turbine pumps and the use of inexpensive natural gas pumped from the underlying Hugoton gas field combined to promote the development of ground water irrigation from the 1940s.The most striking in the history of the High Plains is the invention and introduction of the center pivot irrigation system. The Gigots introduced a valley brand system of center pivot irrigation in 1963 in order to improve their farmland in the sandhill, and their success triggered the application of the new irrigation technology. The early 1970s were boom years in Garden City and its vicinity when the Gigot Irrigation soled 600 systems annually. The sandhills on the right bank of the Arkansas, where rolling topography, infertile soils, and excessive drainage defied intensive use of land and therefore remained the barrens, were most efectively transformed into the landscape dominated by big circles. On the left bank, center pivot systems were introduced in the dry land farming districts on the talbelands, while they are gradually replacing traditional ditch and groundwater irrigation. Such a transformation process is well documented by the distribution of wells and the aerial photo analyses. Due to these irrigation developments, production of feed crops expanded such as maize, alfalfa, sorghum, and soy beans.The development of irrigation and feed crop production is key to understand the subsequent phases of regional changes, including feedlot and beef packing industries, population composition and dynamics, and undergroud water management. It is necessary to closely examine these geographic features in order to understand the sustainability of the High Plains regions.

Groundwater use for irrigation in Bangladesh: The prospects and some emerging issues

Groundwater represents a vitally important resource for Bangladesh for its irrigation development. Great efforts are now underway to increase irrigated acreage by employing a mix of three major types of tubewell system—deep, shallow, and hand tubewells. This paper attempts to analyse the past trends of development of groundwater irrigation as well as a number of relevant policy issues, such as the gap between the potential and actual use of the capacity of the different tubewell systems, the rate of groundwater withdrawal that can be sustained on a long-term basis, the recently adopted ‘privatization’ policy of the government, and the choice of scale in the promotion of the different types of tubewell systems. Finally, a number of problem areas are identified, and some immediate actions required to deal with the problems are indicated.