Introduction

Three basic requirements of agricultural production are

soil, seed, and water.
In addition, fertilizers, insecticides, sunshine, suitable
atmospheric temperature, and human labour are also
needed.
Of all these, water is most important requirement of
agricultural production.
The moisture available in the root-zone soil, either from
rain or from underground waters
Deficiency of moisture may be either for the entire crop
season or for only part of the crop season reduces for
optimum plant growth,

Introduction
therefore, it becomes necessary
to make up the deficiency by
adding water to the root-zone
soil.
This artificial application of
water to land for supplementing
the naturally available moisture
in the root-zone soil for the
purpose of agricultural
production is termed irrigation.

Advantages and disadvantages of

irrigation
The main objective of
irrigation is to
supplement the
natural supply of
water to land so as to
obtain an optimum
crop yield.
For achievement of
this
objective,
an
It involves
planning,
designing, construction,
irrigation
is
operation system
and maintenance
of the various
developed.
irrigation structures required to brining water
from the water source to irrigation field.

1.

Advantages and Disadvantages of

irrigation
Increase in crop yield:.

2. Protection from famine:

3. Cultivation of superior crops:
4. Elimination of mixed cropping:
5. Economic development:
6. Hydro power generation:.
7. Domestic and industrial water supply:
8. Navigation
9. Flood Control
10. Development of fishery
11. Ground water recharges

Advantages and disadvantages of

irrigation
Raising of water Table
Formation of marshy area
Dampness of weather
Loss of soil fertility
Soil erosion
Production of harmful gases
Breeding for Mosquites
Loss of valuable lands

Crops, their seasons and periods

(Cropping pattern & intensity)
There are two types of crop and it their
seasons,
Kharif (Mansoon/Summer) (July to October)
and
Rabi (Winter) (October to March).
Kharif crops are usually sown with the
beginning of the first rains in July, during the
south-west monsoon season starts on 16 April
and lasts until 15 October
The Kharif season is characterised by a gradual

Crops, their seasons and periods

(Cropping pattern & intensity)
There are two types of crop and it their
seasons,
Kharif (Mansoon/Summer) (July to October)
and
Rabi (Winter) (October to March).
The rabi crops are sown around mid-November,
after themonsoonrains are over, and
harvesting begins in April/May. Their main
source of water is rainwater that has
percolatedinto the ground; they require
irrigation

Cropping pattern
Cropping patterns indicate the areas under
crops in different crops seasons
Cropping pattern is the proportion of area under
various crops at a
point of time
The
cropping
pattern
It
changes
over
spacedepends
and timemainly following
factors
Availability of Water
Type of Soil
Climatic Condition
Value of crops

Cropping pattern

Cropping pattern

Cropping Intensity
Cropping intensity is the ratio between total
cultivation areas to the total command area within
year.
It is the ratio of Net Area Sown to the Total Cropped
Area.
Gross command area (GCA): The total area lying between
drainage boundaries which can be commanded or irrigated by a
canal system.
Culturable Command Area (CCA): The gross command area
contains unfertile barren land, alkaline soil, local ponds, villages and
other areas as habitation.
These areas are called unculturable areas.
The remaining area on which crops can be grown satisfactorily is
known as cultivable command area (CCA).

Command area can further be divided into 2 categories

1. Culturable cultivated area: It is the area in which crop is grown at
a particular time or crop season.
2. Culturable uncultivated area: It is the area in which crop is not
sown in a particular season.
G.C.A = C.C.A + UNCULTURABLE AREA
Methods of field irrigation and their suitability
After an irrigation water is taken from the sources by any of the
techniques (Diversion from river or reservoir or pumped from the
ground sources etc),
It can be distributed to the agricultural field by different methods as
summarized in the following chart schematically.

Furrow irrigation is
adapted for row crops
like Maize, Vegetable,
Banana etc
Irrigation can be by
corrugation using
small irrigation
streams

It is adapted for on
various slope
except on steep
slopes because of

Contour irrigation is practiced in hilly area

Land is divide into horizontal strips called terraces
Controlling flood and soil erosion

Check Flooding irrigation method

Basin Flooding irrigation method

advantages and disadvantages, and the choice

of the method depends on the following factors:
(i) Size, shape, and slope of the field,
(ii) Soil characteristics,
(iii) Nature and availability of the water supply
subsystem,
(iv) Types of crops being grown,
(v) Initial development costs and availability of
funds, and
(vi) Preferences and past experience of the

suitable irrigation method are as follows:

(i) Store the required water in the root-zone of
the soil,
(ii) Obtain reasonably uniform application of
water,
(iii) Minimise soil erosion,
(iv) Minimise run-off of irrigation water from the
field,
(v) Provide for beneficial use of the runoff
water,
(vi) Minimise labour requirement for irrigation,
(vii) Minimise land use for ditches and other
controls to distribute water,
(viii) Fit irrigation system to field boundaries,

The process of planning of an irrigation project can be

divided into the following two stages:
(i) Preliminary (Feasibility) planning, and
(ii) Detailed planning.
Preliminary plans, based on available information, are
generally approximate. Based on preliminary planning,
measurements are taken and the plans are prepared.
Obviously, detailed plans are more accurate. Alterations in
the detailed plans may be necessary at all stages of the
project.
The preparation of plans of an irrigation project in an
undeveloped region is a complicated task and needs the
expertise of specialists in areas of engineering, agriculture,
soil science, and geology.

(i) Type of project and general plan of irrigation works,

(ii) Location, extent and type of irrigable lands,
(iii) Irrigation requirements for profitable crop
production,
(iv) Available water supplies for the project,
(vi) Types and locations of necessary engineering
works,
(vii) Needs for immediate and future drainage,
(viii) Feasibility of hydroelectric power development,
(ix) Cost of storage, irrigation, power, and drainage
features,
(x) Evaluation of probable power, income, and indirect
benefits,
(xi) Method of financing the project construction,
(xii) Desirable type of construction and development,
(xiii) Probable annual cost of water to the farmers,
(xiv) Cost of land preparations and farm distribution
systems, and