Without
people’s involvement and a holistic approach there cannot be a viable
water resource management policy, says S M Virmani
Water
governance, to me, connotes the intimate connection that water holds
in sustaining our agriculture and the institutions through which
we govern its efficient use. Water is the key natural resource underpinning
ecological agric`ulture and since this resource varies both in space
and time, a flexible, essentially decentralised, system of governance
is needed in order to maintain its productivity. This aspect is
particularly important in rainfed dryland agriculture, which covers
over 60 per cent of arable cultivated area in our country where
crops are grown with the help of rainwater. Crop yields in the rainfed
drylands are low, degradation of land resources in this sector of
our agriculture is high and much of the rainwater is lost as surface
runoff. The runoff water also erodes the topsoil and takes non-point
pollutants with it, which endanger the ecological balance and the
environment.
Water
Governance For Greening Drylands
The statement of shared concern issued by the participants of
the Centre for Science and Environment organised conference on water
harvesting systems held in 1990, is still relevant today, more than
a decade later. The conference concluded that water, food and livelihood
security will continue to be the prime challenges to our sustainable
development, with water as the prime limited resource. It was also
underscored that not only surface water resources but ground water
aquifers are being mismanaged and over-exploited and there are growing
problems with water quality. Subsidised water supply extended by
the state has encouraged over-exploitation of water and has thus
put the limited water resources under severe stress. A new paradigm
is needed for integrated management of our land and water resources,
building on traditional water management systems. It must incorporate
improved practices that the research institutions (in and outside
India) have found useful in sustaining water resources. Appropriate
decentralised community action on water governance backed by a legislative
framework can play a critical role in conservation of rainwater,
recharging of groundwater resources to sustainable levels, and
arresting water pollution and the decline in water quality.
Rainfed
Dryland Agriculture
In dryland agricultural areas, the amount and distribution of
rain during the rainy season governs the quality and length of the
growing season. Because of their very nature, the monsoon rains
occur in heavy rainfall storms at infrequent intervals. These rainy
spells are interspersed with drought-like rainless periods, when
crops may be exposed to moisture deficits. Improving the soil moisture
status and providing for lifesaving supplemental irrigation from
local water resources is, thus, of primary importance for raising
the productivity of rainfed lands to their potential.
There
are three main components for securing the length of the growing
season to meet crop water needs. These are:
- conserving
water in the soil profile by allowing adequate opportunity time
for rain water to infiltrate into the soil, this is also called
as in-situ conservation of water
- shaping
the land surface and grading it in such a way that excess water
received during periods of high volume rainfall storms, is safely
conducted to water storage reservoirs (or tanks) within the hydrologic
or watershed landscape unit
- augmenting
groundwater recharge to ensure sustainable availability of water
resources.
Watershed
Management
Application of the concepts of improved land and water conservation
methods in watershed management has been widely accepted as a practical
solution for sustaining agricultural production and for increasing
ecological security of rainfed dryland areas. Watersheds allow adoption
of more diversified land-use programmes to meet the demands of the
various segments of land users. In India, several state governments
have identified priority watersheds for development. The planning
strategy takes into account their physical resources, together with
the needs of the watershed community. In most cases an integrated
approach that includes conservation of natural resources, increased
forestation, inclusion of plantation crops and arable agriculture
is recommended. The interests of small farmers and other disadvantaged
groups receive a priority in production-related activities. To be
successful, the watershed programmes are tied to the new and additional
employment creating opportunities, so that the land-less sector
of the watershed-community is benefited.
The
potential of management of natural resources by the introduction
of watersheds for optimal use of land, water and biomass resources
has been demonstrated beyond doubt and the state governments (with
assistance from international organisations in some cases) have
implemented many watershed schemes and made considerable financial
investments. However, the results are neither commensurate with
the effort invested nor visible once the external funding is terminated.
It is generally believed that a major cause of the failure has been
the lack of involvement of the local people in the planning and
execution of these programmes. Wherever compact homogeneous watershed
units were taken up for planning management with complete participation
of the local communities and with readily available fiscal support,
such programmes have met with notable success. The examples of the
Sukhomajri and Ralegan Sidhi watershed programmes apart may be cited
along with several others.
Role
Of Financial Institutions
The only way to increase water security in the rainfed drylands
is through the introduction and successful implementation of watershed
programmes. However, experience has shown that the following issues
must be given priority.
First,
a complete and reliable physical characterisation of the landscape
is essential. The watershed is a part of the larger natural landscape,
which must be characterised for its drainage pattern, the distribution
of soils of different qualities, its current land use, presence
of the water bodies, ground water fluctuations during the year,
intra-and inter-annual variations of rainfall and length of growing
seasons and the runoff potentials of the area, etc. Generally, it
has been noted that most of watershed development proposals are
very weak on this aspect. Only generalised data are included. A
realistic land and water management development programme can only
be built upon the analysis of the location-specific information.
In most instances, the physical feasibility report is either missing
or incomplete. Often, field-level staffs of both government and
non-governmental organisations have no comprehension of the serial
order of the steps involved and the magnitude of the task. Technical
and organisational skills are an area of concern in the implementation
of watershed programmes. In future, increased reliance must be placed
on remotely sensed information for understanding the relative geographic
position of the watershed units and water flow patterns in the landscape.
Ground surveys should be conducted only to supplement and complement
satellite imagery. Some 10-15 per cent of the project funds should
be set-aside for the demarcation of the watershed units cartographically
and the interconnection between them and the main drainage pattern
of the area. Incomplete physical characterization of the targeted
watershed to be developed could prevent its efficient functioning.
Secondly,
peoples’ participation is a basic necessity. The Centre for Science
and Environment has called aptly its report on the practice and
policy of water harvesting “Making Water Everybody’s Business”.
The higher the awareness of the watershed communities of their participation,
in terms of their inputs and commitments, the greater the rate
of success. Local government organisations at the grassroots level
must be involved. Since scarcity of water affects the women-folk
the most, the watershed programmes must involve women, right from
the design to the utilisation of the water. Training of women in
all aspects of the watershed programmes is most necessary for the
successful implementation of watersheds.
Third,
long-term commitment is needed. It takes several months to a year
to design landscape watersheds. The development of the land and
water storage devices takes from 1 to 2 years. The impact of the
implementation of the watershed programmes on increasing well water
levels; improving the ecological aspects of watershed units; reduction
of soil erosion, and increasing productivity to sustainable levels
may take a further period of 3-5 years. All these elements have
to be factored into the construction of the financial plan of watershed
development. The returns from the implementation of watershed programmes
would normally accrue 5-7 years after their inception. Few development
donor agencies and financial institutions have the patience to wait
that long.
And
finally, a watershed programme is a form of group action. It can
be built on the foundation of a well-developed group amongst the
watershed community. Only strong linkages between the watershed
partners for the equitable use of community owned natural resources,
can ensure the success of the programme and the recovery of funds
advanced by the financial institutions.
CONCLUSION
The sustainability of rainfed drylands is essential for pushing
ahead sustainable development programmes. It is a poverty reduction
and equity implementation initiative. However, its success depends
on the co-ordinated performance of a number of agencies intimately
related with water governance. We have already put-in-place a number
of social and legislative structures to efficiently introduce the
land and water development programmes which are watershed-based
to sustain dryland agriculture. These need to be rigorously applied
with a holistic perspective.
The
author, a Natural Resource Management Scientist and Leader of Farming
Systems Research Programme, was formerly ICRISAT Principal Scientist
Article courtesy: Financing Agriculture
