Adaptation, Groundwater Recharge and Livelihood Enhancement: Experiences from Saurashtra Groundwater Recharging Movement

Abstract

An innocuous diversion of rainwater into their farm wells by a few farmers two decades ago has triggered a water-centric social movement popularly known as the Saurashtra groundwater recharging movement in the southwestern part of Gujarat, India. Since irrigation is a socio-technical phenomenon, this paper attempts to capture the social and technical factors that influenced and shaped the demands and responses, and the shaping of the irrigation technology on the livelihood canvas. Apart from income as a key indicator, as a part of the socio-technical approach, the paper also examines several evidences that contributed to the total income, including agricultural income. These include crops and cropping decisions, changes in cropping intensity, shift from unirrigated land to irrigated land, changes in the number and composition of pump sets, well structuration in terms of depth, radial horizontal bores and depth limitations.The paper also analyzes the quantum of recharge estimated at the village level with the stage of groundwater development. The agrarian livelihood decisions reflect farmers' wisdom of adaptive techniques. The movement also got a boost due to the Gram Jyoti Yojana that provided an assured supply of energy for a certain number of hours every day.

Subsidies alone are not enough to increase adoption of agricultural water management interventions

“…Although dugwells remain the primary source of irrigation, farmers in the study region have increasingly been using borewells to supplement their shallow dugwells. Unlike drip irrigation, borewell drilling in the region is not supported by government subsidies but is being taken up by farmers as a supply augmentation strategy (Mudrakartha, 2012;Kulkarni et al, 2000).…”

Lift Irrigation Schemes in Andhra Pradesh

“…There is much literature and ongoing research on environment and development (see earlier works by Adams, 1990;Etienne, 1997;Shiva, 1988), including issues of irrigation and related technological strategies across the world, more so for developing countries (Ashra & Chakravarty, 2007;Barnes, 2012;Batterbury, 2001;Caizhen, 2009;Castro, 2008;Gunchinmaa et al, 2011;Kantor & Pain, 2012;Karim, 2006;Mehrotra, 2009;Parfitt, 2009;Perera, 2004;Subba, 1999;Van den Berg et al, 2003;Zubair, 2005). Regarding India (Ackermann, 2012;Bradford et al, 2003;Buechler & Mekala, 2005;Choudhury, 2007;Choudhury et al, 2009;Diwakara, 2006;D'Souza, 2003;Iyengar, 1998;Lalnilawma, 2009;Madsen, 1999;Mishra, 2010;Mohan, 2004;Mudrakartha et al, 2011;Narain & Nischal, 2007;Phadke, 2002;Reddy, 2003;Reddy & Reddy, 2005;Samal & Dhyani, 2007;Tiwary, 2006Tiwary, , 2009, irregular and failed monsoons add much urgency to technological interventions for making water available where it is needed. The Indian state, as the dominant post-independence development agency, initiated many ambitious irrigation schemes to provide regular employment and income to the rural masses, often with special emphasis on marginal communities and social development (Agoramoorthy &amp...…”

“…While numerous studies on irrigated areas report positive results for marginal farmers in India (Barnes, 2012;Choudhury et al, 2009;Etienne, 1997;Kantor & Pain, 2012;Karim, 2006;Mahapatra, 2007;Mohapatra & Suar, 2008;Mudrakartha et al, 2011;National Institute of Rural Development, 2008;Rizvi, 2012;Tiwary, 2009;Ur-Rehman, 2008), experts have raised apprehensions about construction of new irrigation projects before addressing the currently wide gap between the irrigation potential created and utilised in existing projects. 3 Unless the reasons for such gaps are properly understood, new projects might face the same problems as earlier enterprises and the full potential of new projects might not be realised.…”