Minor Irrigation & Command Area Development 3(2+1)

LESSON 5. Overview of Centrally Assisted MI Schemes

5.1 Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP)

The Accelerated Irrigation Benefitted Programme (AIBP) was taken up with a view to provide Central assistance to encourage the completion of ongoing projects and to help States in creation of irrigation potential. In case of minor irrigation schemes, the central assistance is provided to the projects in the States of North-Eastern Region, hilly States namely, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, undivided Koraput, Bolangir and Kalahandi (KBK) districts of Orissa and projects benefitting tribal areas and drought prone areas. Central assistance is provided as grant which is 90% of the project cost.

AIBP funding is on the basis of proposal made by the State Governments. During XI Plan , a total of 6,488 MI schemes at an estimated cost of Rs 9,798.80 crore have been taken till March 2011, of which 3,670 (57%) have been completed, creating an additional potential of 5.976 lakh Ha against the target of 7.5 lakh ha from surface (MI) schemes under AIBP of during XI Plan.

Based on the average yearly progress during the first four years of the Plan, the target for surface MI schemes under AIBP during 2011-12 has been kept as 1.5 lakh ha. Thus there is no shortfall in creation of irrigation potential from surface MI schemes under AIBP.

5.2 Repair, Renovation & Restoration of Water Bodies

The Government of India approved two schemes on Repair, Renovation and Restoration of Water Bodies for implementation during XI Plan period with domestic support (an outlay of Rs 1,250 crore) and with external support (outlay of Rs 1,500 crore), respectively.

Domestic support (Rs 1,250 crore): The Government of India provides assistance to the extent of 90% as grant with 10% as State share for special category States (North Eastern States), Uttarakhand, H. P., J&K and undivided KBK districts of Orissa, drought prone/Naxal affected/tribal areas, and in the ratio of 25:75 for other areas. The scheme was approved in February, 2009 and after finalization of guidelines, release of funds under the scheme began during 2009-10. Till the end of 2010-11, a sum of Rs 521 crore had been released. The fund requirement for 2011-12 is Rs 684 crore.

External support (Rs 1,500 crore): The Government of India provides assistance to the extent of 25% and 75% State share is to be borrowed from the World Bank by concerned States. This scheme was also approved at the end of financial year 2008-09. Public Water Bodies are covered under the scheme. During 2009-10, a sum of Rs 190.31 crore was been released. World Bank Loan Agreement has been signed with Tamil Nadu for Rs 2,182 crore to restore 5,763 Water Bodies having a CCA of Rs 4 lakh ha, Andhra Pradesh for Rs 835 crore for restoration of 3,000 Water Bodies with a CCA of Rs 2.5 lakh ha, Karnataka for Rs 268.78 crore for restoration of 1224 Water Bodies with CCA of Rs 0.52 lakh and Orissa for Rs 448 crore for restoration of 900 Water Bodies having CCA of Rs 1.2 lakh ha.

5.3 Bharat Nirman Programme

The Irrigation component under this programme envisaged bringing 10 mha under assured irrigation during 2005-09, of which 4.8 mha was attributed to MI schemes, including 2.8 mha is under groundwater and 2.0 mha under surface MI schemes. It is further estimated that, out of 2 Mha proposed under surface water 1 Mha will be from new schemes and remaining 1 Mha from ERM of completed schemes and renovation of traditional water bodies. This is envisaged to be achieved through already ongoing programmes of the Centre and the States. A potential of 2.934 Mha has been achieved from minor Irrigation under Bharat Nirman during 2005-09.

5.4 Schemes of Central Ground Water Board (CGWB)

In general, the schemes of CGWB are basically scientific in nature and are aimed at using of scientific principles for groundwater management and regulation. There are four schemes of CGWB during XI Plan, out of which three pertain to scientific studies, while the fourth scheme deals with infrastructure development of CGWB, which are as given below:

i) Groundwater Management & Regulation

ii) Rajiv Gandhi Institute

iii) Hydrology Project

iv) Infrastructure Development (Scheme of MOWR)

a. GWB component of Acquisition of Land & Building

b. CGWB component of IT Plan

Under the scheme of Groundwater Management & Regulation, District groundwater management studies, groundwater exploration, groundwater monitoring, groundwater resources assessment, artificial recharge to ground water are taken in States. The Board has completed ground water management studies in 6.34 lakh sq km area up to 2010-11 and an area of 1.54 Lakh sq km would be covered in 2011-12; constructed 3,180 exploratory wells up to 2010-11 and 821 would be constructed during 2011-12; monitored about 15,640 ground water observation wells four times a year; and did chemical analysis of 71,446 water samples up to 2010-11. In addition, dynamic groundwater resource assessment of the country has been done in 2004 and 2009 in association with States. The CGWB is implementing demonstration projects on artificial recharge during XI plan in coordination with State agencies for capacity building and replication in similar hydro geological settings by the State agencies.

The Central Ground Water Authority has been entrusted with the responsibility of regulating and controlling ground water development and management in the country and issuing necessary directives for the purpose. CGWA notified 43 areas for regulation of ground water development till X Plan which has risen to 82 areas in XI Plan.

The Rajiv Gandhi National Ground Water Training & Research Institute is responsible for organization of training programmes for officials of CGWB, Central and State government organizations, academic institutes etc. to  build capacity in the field of ground water and related aspects. About 30-35 training courses have been conducted every year by the Institute.

The CGWB under Hydrology Project has set up Computer Data Centres at 26 offices and have upgraded 14 Water Quality Laboratories. This project has facilitated computerization of voluminous data collected over the years by CGWB and State Ground Water Organisations. Dedicated ground water processing and application software, named as Groundwater Estimation and Management System (GEMS) has been developed for hydro geological data entry, data validation, data processing including ground water resource estimation.

Total outlay of schemes of CGWB was Rs 532.74 Crore against which the anticipated expenditure till the end of XI Plan period would be 437.53 Crore.

5.5 Artificial Ground Water Recharge through Dug Wells in Hard Rock Areas in Seven States

Pursuant to the announcement by Honourable Finance Minister in his Budget Speech 2007, a State sector scheme on “Artificial Recharge to Ground Water through Dug Wells” during XI Plan is under implementation in 1,180 overexploited, critical and semi-critical blocks in 146 districts in the seven States, namely A. P., Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, T. N., Gujarat and M. P. at an estimated cost of Rs 1,798.71 crore, with a subsidy component of Rs 1,499.27 crore. The number of irrigation dug wells proposed for recharge in the scheme is 4.45 million. Of which 2.72 million belong to small and marginal farmers and 1.73 million to other farmers. Average cost of recharge structure per well was Rs 4,000. The scheme ended on March 2010.

5.6 Rainwater Harvesting Scheme

Centrally sponsored rain water harvesting scheme was implemented all over India during 2004 to 2007 for SC/ST farmers in providing irrigation facilities to their homesteads / farmlands in order to augment their income generating capacity. Implementation of the scheme started during 2004-05. The scheme ended by 31 March 2007. An amount of Rs 2,360 lakh has been utilized as against Rs 2,450 lakh released by GOI to NABARD. About 18,016 units of water harvesting structures have been constructed in 28 States and all union territories benefiting total area of 8,807.5 Ha.

5.7 The Million Shallow Tube-well Programme (MSTP) of the Government of Bihar

The Million Shallow Tube-well Programme (MSTP) was implemented in Bihar for bringing additional 20 lakh ha of farm land of the State under assured irrigation over a period of 5 years (2002 to 2007). The programme envisaged construction of two types of irrigation structures viz., Cavity Boring (100 mm dia and 25 m depth) and Shallow Tube-well (100 mm dia and 30m/45m depth depending upon suitability of the area) with 4.5 / 5 HP diesel pump set. At the end of March 2007, 4,07,758 units (58%) had been achieved against a target of 6,97,111, with subsidy utilization of Rs 31,297 lakh (57.5%) against Rs 54,464 lakh released by GOI to NABARD.

5.8 Bihar Ground Water Irrigation Scheme (BIGWIS)

The BIGWIS which is under implementation aims at providing irrigation to 9.28 lakh hectare of agricultural land in Bihar by installing 4.64 lakh units of private shallow tubewells /dug wells with pump sets. The programme envisages constructing mainly two types of irrigation structures viz., shallow tube wells and dug wells (depth depending upon suitability of the area) with various capacity of pump sets as below:

i) Shallow Tube wells (4"dia) up to a maximum depth of 70 m & Pump sets for plains.

ii) Dug-wells of 3 m diameter and 12 m depth with Pump sets mainly for hilly areas.

iii) Pump sets (BIS mark Electric / Diesel driven pump sets) 3 to 5 HP only

(Kerosene oil driven pump sets not allowed).

The programme is envisaged to cover all the districts and commences from the year 2009-2010 and would be completed by 2011-12. The estimated subsidy for the programme is Rs 105,588 lakh

5.9 On-farm Water Management for Increasing Crop Production in Eastern States

The Scheme was implemented in all Districts of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Mizoram, Orissa States and 35 Districts of Eastern Uttar Pradesh and 9 Districts of West Bengal.

The objective of the scheme to develop irrigation facilities by tapping the ground water resources of the Eastern States in a planned manner so as to achieve substantial increase in agricultural production, productivity and per capita income of farmers in the region. The eligible activities/components of the Scheme were (a) Shallow Tube-wells with pump sets, (b) Community lift irrigation points for groups/individuals, (c) Electric /non-electric water pumping sets and (d) Dug wells.

The implementation started in 2002-03 and ended by 31 March 2006. An amount of Rs 10,354.25 lakh has been utilized against Rs 11500 lakh released by GOI to NABARD.

5.10 Minor Irrigation Schemes under Bundelkhand Package

Under the Bundelkhand Package, funds have been provided to the State Governments of U.P. and M.P. for water resources development. The MI activities in 13 districts in the two States are as given below:

5.10.1New Minor Irrigation Schemes: 93 schemes costing Rs 417 crore have been taken up in M. P. Work on 41 schemes has been completed and remaining 52 schemes are at different stages of completion. On completion an area of 30,462 ha will be irrigated.

5.10.2 Completion of On-going Minor Irrigation schemes: 52 On-going Minor Irrigation Schemes with an allocation of Rs 125 crore have been taken up in M. P. Of these 12 schemes have been completed and work is under progress on rest. An area of 18,397 ha will be irrigated on completion of work.

5.10.3 Lift Irrigation Schemes: 33 Lift Irrigation Schemes have been taken up for reconstruction and maintenance in U. P. with an allocation of Rs 52 crore. The water is being lifted from the Yamuna River during the rainy/post rainy season for irrigating the kharif as well as rabi crops. Repair work on 6 lift irrigation schemes has been completed and work is under progress on remaining 27 schemes.

5.10.4 Distribution of Pump Sets: In M. P., pumps for lifting ground water from dug wells are being provided under convergence to the SC/ST and OBC farmers. About 28,000 dug wells constructed under MNREGA and supplemented with water lifting devices to turn these wells into productive assets.

5.10.4 Repair, Renovation and Restoration of Water bodies: 28 water bodies for minor irrigation are being repaired and restored in U. P. with an amount of Rs 46 crore. On completion, an area of 19,851 ha will be irrigated.

5.10.5 Restoring capacities of canals, including repair and remodelling: out of the 39 schemes, sanctioned for Rs 150 crore in UP, 8 Schemes have been completed. On completion of all the schemes, 31,834 ha will be brought under irrigation Being a drought prone area, repair, renovation/completion and construction of new Minor Irrigation schemes will help in irrigating crops, mitigating drought conditions and distress in the region. The Package is being implemented under the guidance and monitoring of National Rain-fed Area Authority, Planning Commission, New Delhi.

5.11 Promotion of Micro Irrigation and Best Practices

The Government of India launched a Centrally Sponsored Scheme on Micro Irrigation (MIS) in January 2006. Keeping in view the demand of the Micro Irrigation Technology, the scheme has been constituted during XI Plan period in a Mission Mode as “National Mission on Micro Irrigation (NMMI)”. Under this scheme, Central subsidy is provided @ 60% of the total cost of the system for small and marginal farmers and @ 50% for general farmers, including 10% of State share. Some of the States are providing more subsidy, ranging from 20- 50%, to lessen the burden on farmers. Since inception, there is achievement of 3 mha under Micro Irrigation. NMMI includes latest technologies like different types of valves, filters and fertigation component etc. so that there will be an increase in water use efficiency, productivity of crops and savings of use of fertilizers, water and electricity.

The NMMI scheme is implemented in the entire country including North Eastern States and Himalayan States where the hilly terrain has much demand for MI system. During 2010-11 NMMI achieved an area of 6 lakh Ha with its strong promotional activities in all the States. The farmers whether small, marginal or general are now aware of the benefit of the technology and even farmers having half a hectare land are applying this technology to get more production and more income. This MI system has increased the cropping intensity, productivity and income of the farmers. The cultivation of crops has the effect on crop diversification from low value crop to high value crop through this technology. The NMMI has promoted cultivation of vegetables with close spacing of laterals and use of micro sprinkler and mini sprinkler in the field which is saves water and increases production within a short time so that the farmers get more income by using the same land by taking three crops per annum.

5.11.1 Water Resources Strategy for 31 Distressed Districts

Consequent to the large scale suicides committed by the farmers in 31 districts spread over the States of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala due to failure of crops for various reasons, the Government of India identified these districts as distressed districts. To address the issue, Government of India has taken several steps including Prime Minister's Special Rehabilitation Package. Accordingly, Central subsidy of Rs 76.65 crore and State subsidy of Rs 19.16 crore has been released during 2005-06 under the National Micro Irrigation Projects in these districts.

The Ministry of Rural Development is implementing Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) with the objective of providing open irrigation wells to the poor, small and marginal farmers free of cost under other Centrally sponsored schemes also like Rashtriya Sam Vikas Yojana (RSVY) which target social and regional imbalances in the country financial assistance is provided for minor irrigation schemes.

5.11.2 Reasons for low performance

In eastern and north eastern parts of the country, mainly in the states of Assam, Bihar, West Bengal and parts of U.P., the stage of ground water development is less than 47%. The major reason for low development in these states is poor economic status of small and marginal farmers, fragmented holdings and lack of rural electrification. Parts of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and part of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are in hard rock terrain and presence of ground water is subject to availability of secondary porosity i.e. joints, fractures, fissures and weathered residuum. In such hard rock areas, probability of targeting ground water resource is low and sustainability of water supply through successful wells is also low due to low recharge rate.

The over draft in over-exploited and critical areas has caused depletion of water tables which has resulted in failure of wells, shortage of water supply and water quality problems. High concentration of salts, fluorides, iron, nitrates, arsenic and pathogens are also serious limitations of ground water use especially for drinking.