Evaluating the need and feasibility of micro-irrigation systems for sustainable irrigation

Irrigation is crucial for sustainable agriculture and improving farm yields, but a significant gap exists between the irrigation potential created and its actual utilization. This gap is due to losses in canal conveyance and the inefficiency of conventional irrigation methods within canal command areas. Most modernization efforts in India focus on implementing micro-irrigation for tube well systems, addressing the problem of water table decline experienced in many districts. With this context, the present study examines the command area of Gadarjudda minor of the Upper Ganga Canal in Haridwar district, Uttarakhand, India, to assess the present state of the canal by conducting on-site surveys and feasibility of micro-irrigation by evaluating the viability of replacing minor canals with a gravity flow piped irrigation network. The evaluation involves assessing the current canal status, designing the gravity flow piped irrigation network, and conducting a social survey to determine farmers' willingness, awareness, and purchasing capacity toward adoptin of micro-irrigation systems on their farms. The study identifies high conveyance loss and poor maintenance in conventional irrigation methods, highlighting the importance of micro-irrigation in the study area. The profile of the minor canal is adequate to support gravity flow in the pipe network, with velocity and pressure head within permissible limits. A social survey revealed that 85% of farmers are willing to adopt micro-irrigation, but low purchasing capacity (36%) hampers its adoption. The study concludes that micro-irrigation is viable in the Gadarjudda minor canal command area as long as a piped irrigation network is implemented and farmers receive government subsidies and proper training.