Gujarat: Micro irrigation to be compulsory for famers

The state government has decided to make micro irrigation systems compulsory for farmers who wish to receive water from canals of the Narmada project. The government will start this on a pilot basis for the 2 lakh hectare command area of Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited in Saurashtra region. It will soon implement this for all the farmers who wish to receive water from Narmada canals.

A senior official in Gujarat government said, "The basic thrust of this entire project is to provide water to farmers at the farthest end and use of micro irrigation system is a prerequisite as per the basic rules of this project. We will be implementing the process in the state the project is almost complete and the command area covered has also increased. This means more farmers will be able to receive water from Narmada."

"The water Gujarat receives from Narmada is not going to increase and therefore, the farmers will have to make judicious use of the water so that more people benefit from it. We were letting farmers receive water through flood irrigation as the command area was lesser earlier due to ongoing canal work. But it cannot be allowed anymore," added the official.

The government was compelled to take this decision after there was a water crisis this year due to inadequate rainfall in the catchment area of Narmada River in Madhya Pradesh. The government was forced to cut the supply of water for irrigation after March 15 and kept reserved water for drinking purpose only.

"This year's situation was an alarm bell for us since there is no guarantee how much rainfall Narmada will receive each year. We have seen days when there was water overflowing from the dam, but that is no guarantee it will happen every year. Now, the height of the dam has also been increased to store more water in Sardar Sarovar. All the farmers will be placated to switch over to micro-irrigation systems like drip irrigation or sprinklers," another senior official from the state government said.

"A high power committee being chaired by CM Vijay Rupani met on Tuesday to discuss his visit to Israel, agriculture, and water management. The CM also lay stress on the implementation of micro-irrigation. A partnership with Israel is under serious consideration for the irrigation system," the official added.

WATER MANAGEMENT

• The water Gujarat receives from Narmada is not going to increase and therefore, farmers will have to make judicious use of it, so that more people benefit from it. 
   
• Earlier, they were allowed to receive water through flood irrigation as the command area was lesser earlier due to ongoing canal work. 
   
• Govt was forced to take this decision after this year’s draught, following low rainfall in Narmada’s catchment area.