Water

W t M Managementt for
f Rice
Ri
and other irrigated dry crops

Dr M.D.Reddy,
Director,, Water Technology
gy Centre,,
Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University
Rajendranagar, Hyderabad

Lecture delivered at One day workshop to WUA presidents at WALAMTARI, Hyderabad, 1

India. March 20, 2010
 Irrigation
¾At 59mha largest
g irrigated
g area

¾Productivity very low <2.5 t/ha

¾Irrigation system are supply

driven

ff
¾Efficiency is very low 40%

¾No lack of technology

2
 meter perr cap
Per Capita Availability
6000

5000
vailibilty (Cubic m

4000
year)

3000 Water Stress Line

y

Water Scarcity Line

2000
Water Av

1000

0
W

1951 1991 2001 2025 2050

3
How much water do people use?
(liters/day)

Drinking 2-5
H
House h
hold
ld 20
20-400
400
Kg of grain (cereals) 1000 liters ET
Vegg diet 2600 liters ET
Non Veg –Diet 5400 liters Et

4
 Groundwater
Retension as soilrecharge
moisture 9% Evaporation &
10% evapotranspiration
41%

Surface run-off
40%

Fig 1: Annual water resource in Andhra Pradesh

Sourse: R.Vijayakumari and M.D.Reddy, 2007

5
 Minor irrigation
(Ground water)
29.60 lakh ha ((29%) Major
ajo & medium
ed u
irrigation
50 lakh ha (49%)

Minor irrigation
g
(Surface water)
23 lakh ha (22%)

Fig 2: Ultimate irrigation potential in Andhra Pradesh

6
The main objectives of efficient irrigation
g
management

1) High yield of good quality

2) High water use efficiency
3) Least damage to soil
i productivity
i i and
4) Low irrigation cost

7
The farmers
Th f b
broadly
dl fface ttwo
situations:

1) Adequate water availability at

demand

2) Limited water availability

8
 SOIL PROPERTIES

• Texture,
• S
Structure,
• Depth
p of soil
- influence water retention
and conductivity

9
 PLANT CHARACTERS
Differences in duration,
rooting
ti characters
h t ( Rooting
R ti d
density,
it
Rooting depth)
canopy structure with in the crop influence
the water requirements
Resistance offered byy the pplant for escape
p of
water from leaf surface to atmosphere beside
moisture sensitive periods

10
 Atmospheric conditions

Precipitation
Precipitation,
Temperature,
Relative
i humidity
i i
Wind velocityy
- dictate the rate of ET from
cropped field and influence the
water requirement of crops
11
Effective Root Zone Depth of Different
Crops for Soil Moisture Extraction
Shallow Moderately Deep rooted Very deep
rooted < 60 deep rooted < 120 cm rooted 180
cm (60-90 cm) cm
Rice Groundnut Cotton Citurs
Onion Castor Maize Grapevine
Cabbage Tobacco Sorghum Safflower
Cauliflower Wheat Sugarcane Coffee
Chillies Pearl millet
French Soybean
bean
Carrots
12
 IRRIGATION
• Irrigation is defined as an artificial application of water
f the
for th purpose off supplying
l i moisture
i t essential
ti l tto plant
l t
growth.

It is applied to the soil for other purposes .

• For supplying the moisture essential for plant growth
• To provide crop insurance against short duration
droughts
• To cool the soil and atmosphere, thereby making more
favorable environment for p plant g
growth,,
• To wash out or dilute salts in the soil.
• To reduce the hazards of soil piping, and
• To soften tillage pans
13
 Irrigation water management
• It is defined as the integrated process of
intake, conveyance, regulation,
measurement distribution
measurement, distribution, application and
use of irrigation water to farms and
drainage of excess water
water, with proper
amounts and at right time for the purpose
of increasing crop production and water
economy in conjunction with improved
agricultural practices.
practices
14
 Water requirement of crops

• It is the amount of water required

q to raise a
successful crop in a given period.
• It comprises the water lost as evaporation from
crop field
field, water transpired and metabolically
used by crop plants, water lost during
application which is economically unavoidable
and the water used for special operations such
as land preparation, puddling of soil, salt
leaching and so on.
• The
Th water requirement
i is
i usually
ll expressed d as
the surface depth of water in millimeters or
centimeters.
15
 Scheduling irrigation

Irrigation scheduling is the process of determining

1. When to irrigate and
2 How much water to apply
2.

Time of irrigation is usually governed by two

major conditions, namely, (1) water need of
crops
c ops a
andd ((2)) a
availability
a ab ty o of irrigation
gat o water.
ate
Water need of crops is, however the prime
consideration to decide the time of irrigation.
g
16
Moisture sensitive periods of crop:

Sorghum - booting, flowering, milky and

dough stages
Maize – tasselling, silking and early grain
formation
Finger millet – Panicle initiation and
flowering
Wheat – CRI, shooting and heading
Groundnut – Rapid flowering, peg
penetration and early pod development
Sunflower – flower bud initiation, heading,
17
flowering and milky stages
Approaches for scheduling of irrigation

Broadly classified in to three groups

™S il moisture
™Soil it regime
i approach
h

™Climatological approach and

™Plant indices

18
PLANT CRITERIA:

•Plant appearance

•Plant water potential and water content

•Plant
Plant growth

•Critical stages of crop water need

•Indicator plant

•Stomatal aperture
p

•Leaf diffusion resistance

•Plant temperature
19
Schematic diagram of soil water status and critical level of soil water

20
CRITERIA BASED ON SOIL WATER STATUS

•Hand feel and appearance of soil

•Gravimetric soil moisture sample

•Soil water content
Depth-interval of irrigation
•Depth-interval
•Critical level of soil water
•Soil water tension
•Electrical resistance

21
CLIMATALOGICAL APPROACH

•Empirical
Empirical formulae ( water budget approach )

•Evaporimeter

•Irrigation water/cumulative pan evaporation ratio

22
IW/CPE RATIO :

•The ratio of the amount of irrigation applied to cumulative

pan ev
p evaporation
po o vvalue
ue

•The pan evaporation values are added up every day till it is

equal to a certain ratio of water applied as irrigation.

•The ratios for various crops is determined experimentally.

23
HOW MUCH WATER TO APPLY:

The quantity of irrigation water to be applied to the

soil at each irrigation depends upon the amount of
available soil moisture in the soil , the moisture
extraction depth of the roots (effective root depth) at
the time of starting irrigation.

24
 Crop water requirements
Crop Season Water
requirement,
mm

Rice kharif 1000-1500

Rabi 1200 1800
1200-1800
Maize Rabi 450-600
Jowar Rabi 450-600
Cotton Kharif and 650-850
part in rabi
Sugarcane Coastal A.P. 1950-2700
Telangana 1950-2750
25
Groundnut Rabi 350-500
Sunflower Rabi 350-500
350 500
Sesame Rabi 300-350
S b
Soybean R bi
Rabi 400 450
400-450
Redgram Rabi 350-450
Green Rabi 200-400
gram/Black
gram
Bengal gram Rabi 350-500

26
 Major Rice cultural systems
Rainfed
• Rainfed upland – Without standing water
• Rainfed lowland – With 5
5-50
50 cm standing
water
• Deep water Rice
Irrigated
• Transplanting
• Dryseeding – Aerobic rice
• Wet seeding

27
 Total water requirements

• Totalwater requirement includes water

needed to raise seedlings, prepare land, and
to grow a crop of rice from transplanting to
harvest
•Water requirement depends on many factors
like soil type,
type topography
topography, fertility of the soil,
soil
depth of water table and evaporative demand
of the growing season
28
Water management in rice

Water requirement:

• Wide variations in water requirement

q of rice
(935 to 2650 mm) of rice in Tamilnadu
(Chandramohan, 1970).
• The water requirement from transplanting to
harvesting in different soil and climatic
situations
it ti vary between
b t 1020 to
t 2740 mm

29
 Water management in rice
• Proper scheduling of irrigation helps to
economize the total water use and increase
water use efficiency
• Varieties of short duration have been found to
be better than long duration varieties in terms of
their water use efficiency
• Water requirement of paddy may met from the
water received
i d through
h h rainfall
i f ll and/or
d/ through
h h
irrigation application

30
 Water use and Water
management practices for
Rice
• To minimize water use for rice
cultivation
•To improve water use efficiency

31
 Moisture stress effects at different
growth
h stages
• Moisture stress effects vary at different
growth stages of rice crop
• Moisture stress reduces yield most when it
occurs during the critical growth stages
• Rice
Ri iis mostt sensitive
iti tto moisture
i t stress
t
from 20 days before heading to 10 days
after
ft heading
h di

32
• Panicle initiation, flowering, grain filling
and active tillering stages of crop are
critical to moisture
• Water
W t requirement
i t is
i low
l att seedling
dli
stage
• Water requirement is more during the
reproductive period
• Very little water is needed at the last
phase which includes milk,, dough,
p g ,
yellowish and full ripening stages 33
Classification of soils based on percolation
values for suitability of lands for rice culture

Class Percolation mm/day

E
Excellent
ll 10 25
1.0-2.5

Good 2.5-5.0

Marginal 5.0-7.5

Unsuitable More than 7.5

75

34
Types of water loss from rice fields
• Evapotranspiration
• Percolation losses
• C bi d seepage and
Combined d percolation
l ti llosses
• Surface drainage

35
 Percent water loss by rice in different
seasons

100% 29.1 40.5

water loss(%) 50.1
Perco. 32.4 25.1
50% 18.7
Evap. 22 5
22.5 20.4 19.5
16 10.8 14.9
Tranp. 0%
Nurseryy Jul-Dec Jan-Apr
p Aprl-Jul
p

36
Percolation losses

37
 Percolation loss in Rice field
• The deep pp percolation loss vary
y with soil type
yp in
the order of sandy soil, sandy loam, fine sandy
loam, heavy clay soil.
• The
Th physical
h i l condition
di i off the
h soilil as created
dbby
soil manipulations such as puddling and
compaction increase the bulk density and
compaction,
minimize the water loss due to percolation
• The principal moisture losses from the rice
paddy may be grouped into vapor losses and
losses in liquid form.

38
Puddling for reducing percolation losses

39
Shallow submergence for better crop growth

40
 Evapotranspiration

When the soil is maintained in a saturated or flooded condition,

evapotranspiration is primarily a function of the energy available for
evaporation
ti off th
the water.
t Th The combine
bi llooses off water
t resulting
lti from
f the
th plant
l t
transpiration and surface evaporation is called evapotranspiration (ET).
41
 Components of water requirement, transpiration,
evaporation and percolation losses of rice crop
under
d varying
i levels
l l off submergence
b

Treatments April
p – July
y Jan - April
p

Trans Evapo Perco Trans. Evapo Perco

. (cm.) (cm.) (cm.) (cm.) (cm.)
(cm.)
Saturation 26 21 34 32 28 36

Shallow 33 43 69 37 33 92
Sub
Deeper 38 49 80 36 34 114
Sub
42
Source : Pande and Mittra 1971
 Effect of different depths of submergence
on grain yield and water requirement of
rice on red chalka soil (sandy loam) at
Hyderabad

Submergence Kharif Rabi

depth, cm WR Yield WR Yield
(cm) (t/ha) (cm) (t/ha)
5+1
5 167
6 4.59
59 337
33 4.46
6

10+1 336 4.42 666 4.89

S
Source :P
Prihar
ih and
dSSandhu,
dh 1987
43
Effect of different depths of submergence on grain
yield and water requirement of rice on red chalka
soil
il (sandy
( d loam)
l ) att hyderabad
h d b d
Treatment Kharif (2) Rabi (1)

WR (cm) Yield WR (cm) Yield

(t/ha) (t/ha)
Continuous 134 5.36 240 4.4
Sub
2 day drainage 96 4 47
4.47 197 3 71
3.71
4 day drainage 80 4.23 161 2.35

CD at 5% 0.82
Fig.
g in parenthesis
p are no.of seasons studied
Source : Prihar and Sandhu, 1987
44
 C li submergence
Cyclic b
•The irrigated water application after two to
three days of subsidence of ponded water
• Saving irrigation water to the extent of 20
20-65%
65%
• In areas were water table is shallow (with in 1m
f
from the
th surface
f )), iirrigation
i ti interval
i t l may be
b
increased to seven daysafter subsidence of ponded
water.
water

45
• In areas, where copious water supplies
exist, the major objective in irrigation
scheduling is to ensure high crop yields at
the least water expense.
• Irrigation at soil saturation / soil
cracking/alternate wetting and drying give
comparable yields, but reduced water
need of the crop.

46
Water management under deficit water
supply:
• Water can be efficiently utilized by proper
puddling perfect land leveling, maintenance of
field and guided bunds, cross bunding across
drainage channels besides rotational water
supply at wider intervals (5-15 days) less water
supply at less critical stage and adequate water
supply at critical stages
• Success of rotational water supply can be
ensured through close co ordination of different
agencies,
i farmers
f andd farmer’s
f ’ organizations
i ti
engaged in irrigated agriculture

47
 Practice to reduce water demand
• Establishment of dry seeded rice in low land
fields
• Growing g of dry
y sown paddy
p y under rainfed for
45- 60 days in areas where water is
g canals/tanks including
released late through g
tail end areas but high intensity rain during
one or other crop growing stages cause land
submergence
b

48
 AEROBIC RICE

Aerobic rice is an attractive alternative to low land

rice in areas where water is limiting factor than land
It llowers th
the llabour
b requirement
i t th
than llow lland
d rice
i
It causes less effect on environment
It shows flood tolerance under low land condition
It shortens the cropping cycle than low land rice

49
• Through aerobic rice the crop yield of 3-6
t/ha can be obtained in different regions
regions.
• The dry seeding technology (Aerobic rice)
combined with other crop management
techniques like supplementary irrigation
and proper fertilization, it is now possible
to grow local varieties using less water
but obtaining higher yields.

50
Aerobi rice in Observational Trial, Chintalapudi, (05.08.07)
Krishna delta, AP 51
 Variety BPT 5204

Aerobic rice at Chintalapudi (5.10.2005), Krishna delta, AP

52
 Effect of supplemental irrigation on dry
seeding g in p
paddy
y ((aerobic rice)) during
g
Kharif 2003 under Pedda cheruvu
command Bhoompally, p y, Medak
Grain yield (t/ha)
Dry
y Dry
y sown p paddy
y Transplante
p
sown with two d paddy
paddy supplemental
irrigations
BPT – 5204 3.85 4.5 5.60
Erramallel 3 10
3.10 4 22
4.22 5 16
5.16
MTU-1010 2.63 3.65 4.55
Mean 3 17
3.17 4 15
4.15 5 12
5.12
53
 Performance of aerobic rice in farmer’s
fields of Vizianagaram
Vizianagaram, Kharif 2004

Name of the Area Grain yield

village (Acres) (t/ha), range

Galavila 40 2.5 – 4.5

Gangada 40 + 20 3.0 – 4.5

Source: APERP, Status Report, Vizianagaram, 2005

54
Water input and water productivity and grain yield
of rice varieties at Rajendranagar, Hyderabad (Kharif 2003)
Grain Water input, mm Water
Varietie
V i ti yield,
i ld Effect Irrigat Total productivity,
d ti it
s t/ha ive ion kg/ha mm(m3)
Rain
fall
Varaalu 3.87 264.8 445.0 709.8 5.45(0.54)
Erramal 5.28 317.7 565.0 882.7 5.98(0.60)
lelu
Jagtials 4.94 322.9 617.5 940.4 5.25(0.53)
annalu
Polasa 4.68 324.1 677.5 1001.6 4.67(0.47)
prabha

Source: G.Srinivas, M.D.Reddy and D.R.Reddy, 2007

55
 Relationship between total water received and grain yield of
dry seeded irrigated rice in different dates of sowing , Kharif 2004

Irrigation water (mm)

1300 Effective rainfall ((mm))

1200 3.26 t ha-1 3.27 t ha-1 2.76 t ha-1 1.88 t ha-1

1100
1000
900
er (mm)

800
625.0 637.5 662.5
700 675.0
Wate

600
500
400
300
387.7 389.1 352.5
200 331.6
100
0
June 16th June 26th July 7th July 18th
56
 Effect of time of starting of irrigation on
grain
i yields
i ld and d water productivity
d i i off rice
i
at Rajendranagar, Hyderabad (Kharif 2003)
Time of Water
irrigati Total water Yield productivity
on ERF IRW input (mm) (t/ha) kg/ha mm (m3)
2.92
45 DAE 226.5 730.0 956.5 2.79 (0.29)
3.11
60 DAE 244.3 580.0 824.3 2.56 (0.31)
9
2.92
75 DAE 248.3 440.0 688.3 2.01 (0.29)
DAE: Days after emergence, ERF: Effective rainfall mm, IRW: Irrigation water mm

Source: G. Srinivas, 2003

57
 Grain yield of aerobic, wet seeded and
p
transplanted rice (Erramallelu),
( ), kharif,, 1989

Method of establishment Grain yield

(/ )
(t/ha)
Broad cast sown – Dry 2.88
seeding
di
Line sown – Dry seeding 3.59

Broad cast sprouted seed – 3.29

Wet seeding
Transplanting 3.4
Source : RARS, Jagtial, Ann. Rep., 1989
58
Yield of aerobic rice (Jagtial Sannalu) in different
treatments ( 2003-04))

Treatment Date of Date of Seed

sowing Harvesting yield
(kg/ha)
Dry seeding @ 01.07.2003 10.11.2003 4234
200 seeds sqm
D seeding
Dry di @ 01 07 2003
01.07.2003 10 11 2003
10.11.2003 4438
400 seeds sqm
Transplanting 07 08 2003
07.08.2003 25 11 2003
25.11.2003 4662

Source : : RARS,
RARS Jagtial,
Jagtial ANGRAU
ANGRAU, Ann
Ann. Rep
Rep., 2002-03

59
Basic SRI Practices:
•Start with young seedlings–8-12 days old ( <15
days) to preserve their potential for profuse growth
off tillers
till and
d roots
t
•Use single seedlings widely spaced–planted in
square pattern, quickly, gently
•Apply minimum water–enough to keep soil moist,
no standing water in fields
•Weed
Weed with a ‘rotating
rotating hoe’to
hoe to aerate soilwhile
returning weeds to the soil
•Provide organic matter--as much as possible for soil
organismsand
i d plants
l t
60
Jharkhandstate, India --Khandagiri, 110-day variety with 65 61
tillers, grown as ‘rainfed’ SRI rice
 Alternate crops to rice during rabi

Crops water Acres of irrigated dry crops

requirement that can be grown with
mm water to one acre rice

Greengram/ 200-400 4.5-6.0

Blackgram
Sunflower 350-400 3.4-4.5
Groundnut 350-500 3.4-3.6
Soybean 400-500 3.0-3.6
Maize/Jowar 450-600 2.6-3.0
O i
Onion 450 500
450-500 26 36
2.6-3.6
Tomato 350-500 3.4-3.6
Bhendi/ 500-600 2.4-3.0
Bi j l
Brinjal
62
Methods of irigation
Surface methods
a) Border strips
b) Check-Basin
c) Furrow method
i) alternate furrow
ii) Ski
Skip furrow
f
iii)Paired row
iv) Paired row or Double row furrows
Sprinkler method
Drip or trikle method
63
Technique that improve water use
efficiency
y
Pressurized irrigation system
Sprinkler irrigation
Drip irrigation
Fertigation

64
 Effect of furrow irrigation on yield and water use

particular Irrigation in each Irrigation in

furrows Alternate
furrows
Maize
Saving of water (%) -- 30.0
Yield q/ha 41.3 40.6
Water use efficiency 25.8 36.7
Cotton
Saving of water (%) -- 27.1
Yield q
q/ha 20.5 19.8
Water use efficiency 6.0 8.0 65
 W t managementt ffor some iimportant
Water t t
I.D. crops

Maize:
Tasseling silking and grain formation are highly
Tasseling,
critical for soil moisture

Ten to eleven irrigations at 7-15 days interval

Excess moisture at seedling stage (up to 30 DAS)

Irrigating the crop at 0.75

0 75 to 0.9
0 9 IW/CPE ratio
66
Cotton:
Cotton deep-rooted crop -can tolerate limited as
well as excess moisture better than many other
crops

The crop yields are better when irrigated at 50%

ASMD or
IW/CPE ratio of 0.6 – 0.9 during post rainy
period.

Ridge and furrow method of irrigation found to

be most efficient with suitable furrow lengths
67
Sugarcane:
Requires
q high
g water requirement
q

First 90-120 days FAS (formative phase) are critical

for moisture stress.
stress

Moisture stress during

g summer drasticallyy reduce the
tiller number and number of millable canes / unit area.

IIrrigating
i ti th crop att IW/CPE ratio
the ti off 1.0
1 0 during
d i
summer months

Application of straw / trash mulch @ 6.0 t /ha

increased the mean cane yield by 10-15% besides
saving
i 40-50%
40 50% off irrigation
i i ti water
t requirement
i t
68
Groundnut:
Grown throughout year-kharif (mostly rain fed) rabi and
summer (irrigated).
(irrigated)

Moisture is critical at germination, flowering, Peg

formation, pod development stages.

Groundnut favors stress condition during first 20

20-25
25 days
after germination

Adequate
Ad t moisture
it att pegging
i andd pod
d development
d l t
improves the crop yield substantially

Irrigating the crop at 0.6 to 0.9 IW/CPE ratio with 6-7

irrigation during rabi, 10-11 irrigations during summer

BBF / boarder strip / check basin / sprinkler method of69

irrigation found better for groundnut
Rabi red gram:
Irrigating at 14-21 days interval found adequate

Crop p favors ridge

g and furrow,, check basin / method
of irrigation.

Flowering and pod development are critical for

moisture stress.

70
Sunflower:
G
Grown th
throughout
h t year in
i red
d and
d black
bl k soil.
il

Heading and grain development are critical for

moisture stress.

4-6 irrigations are adequate for sunflower.

Moisture stress at seedling phase did not adversely

affect the crop yield.

Ridge and furrow / border strip / sprinkler method

of irrigation
71
Chillies:
Chillies thrive better under irrigation in light,
black , red and alluvial soils.

Soils with poor drainage are not suitable.

Furrow method of irrigation is favorable.

Pre planting irrigation is desirable.

Flowering
Fl i t pod
to d development
d l t period
i d is
i very
critical and 3-4 irrigations are required during
this period for better crop yields
72
 Crops to be grown depending on water
availability
Water Choice of Crops
availability
Less (200-400 Sunflower, safflower, blackgram,
mm)) ragi,
i castor,
t mustard
t d

Medium
ed u ((400-
00 Maize,
e, ggroundnut,
ou d u , redgram,
edg ,
600 mm) onion, rajmash
More ((600-800 Cotton,, chilies,, vegetables,
g ,
mm) fodders
Much higher Rice, banana, sugarcane etc.
(>1000 mm)
73
Crops which can withstand the extent
of water stress
Water stress Crops
p

More stress Minor millets,

Safflower,
Sesame

Moderate stress Sunflower, Soybean,

Redgram Bengalgram,
Redgram, Bengalgram
Blackgram, Greengram,
Jowar, Cotton, Sugarcane
74
Less stress Maize,
Banana
No stress Rice,, Vegetables
g

75
CONJUNCTIVE USE OF WATER

“
The management of multiple water
resources in a coordinated operation
p such
that, the water yield of the system over a
period of time exceeds,, the sum of y
p yields of
the individual components of the system
resulting
g from un-coordinated operation
p .”
Gupta et al,2000

76
 BENEFITS FROM CONJUNCTIVE USE OF
WATER

¾ Provides irrigation at times of delayed supplies in

the project

¾ Enables to overcome drought situation

¾ Ensure irrigation to meet crop water requirements

¾ Improves crop intensity

¾ Increased/assured crop yields/ income

77
 SYSTEMS OF CONJUNCTIVE
USE

I Canal
I. C l water
t and
d ground
d water
t system
t

II. Rainfall and irrigation water system

III. Saline water and fresh water system

--- Abrol et al,1988

78
 RECHARGE DUE TO IRRIGATION

CROPS RECHARGE

WET CROPS : AROUND 35 –

40% OF WATER
APPLIED

ID CROPS : AROUND 30%

OF WATER APPLIED

(A part of the irrigation water

from irrigated lands contribute
to recharge) 79
 SURFACE WATER OR GROUND
WATER?

Disadvantage of surface water Development

Precipitation and peak runoff occur during
smallest water demand
• Problem
Transfering water from high supply season to the
high demand season
• Solution
Storing surface water behind dams
Ground storage is valuable alternative to surface
storage
t
80
 INTEGRATED APPROACH FOR CONTROL
OF DECLINING WATER TABLE
1.Reducing
1 Reducing ground water draft
- Enhancing surface water supply
- Developing new projects
- Inter zonal transfer of water
- Storage of surplus water
- Renovation of waste waters
2.Crop diversification
p
3.Optimising g water use in rice
4.Onfarm water management
5.Rationalizing ground water exploitation policies
6F
6.Feasibility
ibilit off exploiting
l iti deep
d aquifers
if
81
 Problems associated with irrigation

1. Uncertain/late release of water

2. Inadequate supplies for crop season and ayacut
3. Salinity , alkalinity, sloaping terrain, depth and
texture
4. Water-logging in low-lying areas
5. Inadequacies in the system management
6. Poor water management and very low irrigation
efficiencies
7. Rice is the predominant crop

82
Water logging: Saturation of the soil root zone with
water due to continuous rain, lack of drainage.
Causes for water logging
¾ Poor natural drainage of sub soil.
soil
¾ High intensity of irrigated agriculture, irrespective of
soil and sub soil.
soil
¾ Heavy seepage losses from unlined canals,
distributaries and farm water courses.
courses
¾ Enclosing irrigated fields with embankments and
choking up natural drainage.
drainage
¾ Blocking of natural drainage channels by roads and
railways.
railways
¾ Over land flow, under ground seepage and flooding. 83
 Effects of water logging
¾ Reduces the soil aeration.
¾ Conc. of O2 of soil decreases because it is used by micro organisms
and plant roots
¾ The depletion of O2 range from partial depletion – hypoxia, to
complete depletion (anoxia) and depend on soil temperature, plant
and microbial biomass and length of water logging
¾ Soil
S il saturated
t t d withith water
t resulting
lti low
l solubility,
l bilit low
l diffusivity
diff i it off
O2 on water.
¾ The susceptible
p crops
p in descendingg order -tobacco,, chillies,, p
pulses
Water logging -rice.
¾ Sensitive crops - Seedling stage highly susceptible to water logging
¾ Yield
Yi ld decreases
d i cereall due
in d t water
to t l i
logging att panicle
i l
development stage.

84
¾Pulses are susceptible at the beginning at flowering.
¾Toxic substances like carbondioxide, hydrocarbon
gases,, hydrogen
g y g sulphidep etc.
¾Leaching of nitrates and denitrification occurs
resulting in nitrogen deficiency.
deficiency

85
 Crop diversification
™ From Low value to High value crops
™ From High water requiring crops to Low
q g crops
water requiring p
™ From Mono crop to Multiple / Mixed crop
™F
From Crop
C alone
l t Crop
to C with
ith Crop-
C
livestock-fish-apiculture (Farming
systems
t approach)h)
™ From Agriculture Production to
Production with Processing and Value
86
Addition
87
Wastewater irrigation: Benefits
• Conserves water
• Low-cost method for
sanitary disposal of
municipal wastewater
• R d
Reduces pollution
ll ti off
rivers, canals and other
surface water
• Conserves nutrients
nutrients,
thereby reducing the
need for artificial
fertilizer
• Increases crop yields
• Provides a reliable
water supply to farmers

88
 Wastewater irrigation: Risks
• Health risks for the
irrigators and consumers
• Ground water
contamination (nitrates)
• Build up of chemical
pollutants in the soil (heavy
metals)
• Creation of habitats for
disease vectors
(mosquitoes) in peri-urban
areas

89
Public health implications

90
91
Musi river wastewater use scenario
2002 2005
2002-2005

92
Musi water and livelihoods

93
Thank You 94