Home

About Site

Content Quality Guidelines

Copyright infringement takedown notification policy

Copyright infringement takedown notification template

Disclaimer

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

Suggest Us

Report Errors

Contact Us

The Important Sources of Irrigationavailable in India? (4 Sources)By Pragati Ghosh

Advertisements:

Important Sources of Irrigation available in India are as follows:

There are three major sources of irrigation in India. They are (a)canals, (b) wells and tube-wells, and (c) Tanks. Wells and Tubewellsare the major source of irrigation. Canals rank second, while the tanksstand third. Canal irrigation has its maximum development in theGreat Plains and in the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna deltas in theeastern coastal plains. Wells and Tubewells are popular in the alluvialplains.

The tank irrigation is common in the eastern and southern states.Relative importance of each source changed through time. Canalswere the major source of irrigation until 1950, claiming 39.9 per centof the net irrigated area in the country.

Since then the irrigated area under canal irrigation increased, but itsshare declined in 2009-10 irrigation increased area upto under 16697thousand hectare. With the introduction of diesel and electricpumping sets, well and tubewell-irrigated areas increased from 5.9million hectares in 1950-51 to 39042 thousand hectares in 2009-10.

Thus, tank irrigation lost its significance both absolutely and relatively.

A. Canals:

Although canal irrigation was introduced on a large scale only duringthe last century, it has already become the principal source ofirrigation in the country because of its cheapness, and the ease andcertainly with which water is supplied. The irrigation canals ofnorthern India rank amongst the greatest and most beneficenttriumphs of modern engineering in the whole world. The canals inIndia are of two types, viz.

(i) Inundation Canals, which are drawn directly from the riverswithout making any kind of barrage or dam at their head to regulatethe flow of the river and the canal. Such canals are intended to use theexcess water of rivers at the time of floods. When the flood subside,the level of the rivers falls below the level of the canal heads andtherefore, the canals dry up. The water supply of such canals isuncertain. They have, therefore, been converted into perennial canals.

(ii) Perennial Canals are those which are constructed by putting someform of barrage across the river which flows throughout the year anddiverting its water by means of a canal to the agricultural fields, bothfar and near. Most of the canals in India are of this type.

About half of Indias net canal irrigated area lies in Uttar Pradesh,Punjab, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh. Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Bihar,Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa,Jammu and Kashmir and Gujarat in that order of importance accountfor most of the remaining about half.

Canals of Punjab and Haryana:

The flat nature of the ground, the regular flow of water and fertilealluvial soil favour canal irrigation. A special feature of the canalsystem of Punjab and Haryana is that all the rivers have been inter-connected by means of canals so that the water resources of these arepooled together for maximum utilization. The Important Canals are:

(1) Upper Bari Doab Canal completed in 1852 is taken from the Raviand its distributaries comprise channels, 1952 km, in length, irrigateabout 3.4 lakh hectares of land in Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts.The total length of main canal is 518 km and along with thedistributaries the length increases to 4900 km.

(2) Western Yamuna Canal takes off from the Yamuna River atTejawala and irrigates about 48,000 hectares of land in Patiala districtof Punjab and Ambala, Rohtak, Karnal, Jind and Hissar districts ofHaryana. The channels are about 3,229 kms. Long. It has threeimportant branches, the Delhi, the Hansi and Sirsa branch.

(3) Sirhind Canal takes off from the Satluj at Ropar and irrigates oversix lakh hectares of land in the districts of Ludhiana, Ferozepur, andPatiala in Punjab and Haryana having length of 6115 kms. The canalirrigates about 7 lakh hectares of cropped areas.

(4) The Sirhind Feeder Canal completed in 1960 takes off from theFerozepur Feeder and is 142 kms long. It irrigates land in Ferozepur,Faridkot and Muktsar tehsils of Punjab besides Rajasthan.

(5) Bhakra Canal was completed in 1964. It takes water from theBhakra dam and irrigates about 15 lakh hectares of land in thedistricts of Hissar and Rohtak in Haryana. The main canal is 174 kmlong and with its distributaries its length increases upto 3,360 km.

(6) Nangal Canal is taken from the Nangal dam and is about 64 kms.Long and irrigates about 26.4 lakh hectares in the districts ofJullundhur, Ferozepur, Ludhiana and Patiala in Punjab and Hissar inHaryana.

(7) Bist Doab Canal: This canal is also a part of the Bhakra-NangalProject which has been taken out from the Satluj River at Nova (1954).It is 154 km long and irrigates about 4 lakh hactares of land inJalandhar and Hoshiarpur districts of Punjab.

(8) Gurgaon Canal: It takes off from the Yamuna River at Okhla (nearDelhi). It provides irrigation to about 3.2 lakh hectares of land inGurgaon and Faridabad districts and some parts of Rajasthan.

(9) Eastern Grey Canal: It takes off from the Saduj near Firozpur. Thecanal was completed in 1933. It irrigates northern part of Firozpurdistrict in Punjab.

Canals of Uttar Pradesh:

Canals account for 27.6 per cent of the net irrigated area of the state,most of which lies in the Ganga- Yamuna doab, Ganga-Ghaghara doaband western part of Bundelkhand region. The total length of canals isabout 50,000 km which provides irrigation to about 70 lakh hectares ofthe cropped area. Main canal systems are as follows-

(1) Upper Ganga Canal:

It takes off from the Ganga River at Kankhal (Hardwar). The digging ofthe canal started in 1842 and it was completed in 1854. The main canalis 342 km long; while alone with the distributaries it is 5,640 km.

The canal passes through a broken country so that at some places it istaken over the bridges and at others below the bridges over its first 32km. It irrigates about 7 lakh hectares of agricultural land in Kanpur,Etah, Muzaffarpur, Meerut, Mathura, Saharanpur, Bulandshahar,Aligarh, Mainpuri and Farrukhabad districts. It merges with the LowerGanga canal. The main branches of canal are the Anupshahar, theDeoband, the Hathras, and the Matta.

(2) Lower Ganga Canal:

It draws its water from the Ganga River at Narora (Bulandshahar). Itwas completed in 1878. The length of main canal is about 100 km,while with distributaries the length increases up to 6,174 km. Itprovides irrigation to about 4.8 lakh hectares of agricultural area inBulandshahar. Aligarh, Etah, Mainpuri, Etawah, Farrukhabad, Kanpur,Fatehpurand Kaushambi districts. Its main branches include: theEtawah, the Kanpur and the Fatehpur. It joins Upper Ganga canal nearKasganj.

(3) Eastern Yamuna Canal:

It has been taken out from the Yamuna River at Fyzabad (Saharanpur).The canal was originally constructed by the Mughal emperorShahjehan and was renovated by the British. The main canal with itsdistributaries is 1,440 km long. It irrigates about 2 lakh hectares ofarea in Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur and Meerut districts in UttarPradesh and Union territory of Delhi.

(4) Agra Canal:

It was dug in 1875. The canal takes its water from the Yamuna River atOkhla. Its total length is about 1,600 km. It irrigates about 1.5 lakhhectares of land in Agra, Mathura and Ghaziabad districts of UttarPradesh; Gurgaon district of Haryana; Bharatpur district of Rajasthan;and the union territory of Delhi.

(5) Sarda Canal:

It takes off from the Sarda River at Banbasa (Nainital). It wascompleted in 1926. The length of canal along with distributaries is12,368 km. It irrigates about 8 lakh hectares of land in the districts ofShahjahanpur, Barabanki, Pilibhit, Sitapur, Kheri, Hardoi, Lucknow,Unnao, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh, Sultanpur, and Allahabad districts. Itsmain branches arc Deva, Bisalpur, Nigohi, Kheri, Sitapur, Lucknowand Hardoi.

Another canal SardaSahayak takes off from the Sardasagar about 20km below the Sarda canal headworks near Indo-Nepal border andaugments the supply in the Sarda Canal. It irrigates about 7.5 lakhhectares of land in Jaunpur, Azamgarh and Ballia districts. The canalwas completed during the Third Plan Period.

(6) Ramganga Canal:

The canal has been partly completed. It takes its origin from theRamganga River near Kalagarh (Garhwal). It will irrigate 6.59 lakhhectares of agricultural land in the Rohilkhand Plains (west centralUttar Pradesh).

(7) Betwa Canal:

It takes off from river Betwa at Paricha, 24 km away from Jhansi. Itwas completed in 1886. It irrigates about 83,000 hectares of land inJhansi, Jalaun and Hamirpur districts. Its main branches are theHamirpur and the Kathauna branch.

(8) Ken Canal:

It is taken out from the Ken River at Gangau (near Panna). Its totallength is 640 km. It irrigates about 96,000 hectares of land in Banda(Uttar Pradesh), and Chhatarpur (Madhya Pradesh) districts.

(9) Matatila Canals:

Matatila barrage (height 36.5 m; length 713 m) has been constructedacross the Betwa river from which two canals (Gursarai and Mandir)are taken out which irrigate about 1.6 lakh hectares of agriculturalland in Lalitpur, Jhansi, Hamirpur, Jalaun (Uttar Pradesh) Bhind,Gwalior, Datia (Madhya Pradesh) districts.

(10) Rihand Project Canal:

These canals have been taken out from the Rihand River at Pipri fromthe barrage of Rihand and are providing irrigation facilities to 16 lakhhectares of land belonging to the eastern Uttar Pradesh and Madhya

Pradesh.

(11) Dhasan Canal:

It takes off from the Dhasan River (tributary of the Yamuna) andprovides irrigation to a part of the Bundelkhand area.

(12) Middle Ganga Canal:

It takes off from a barrage over the Ganga River in Bijnor district. Themain canal is 115 km long which will be linked to the Upper GangaCanal. It will irrigate 1.78 lakh hectares of land in the trans-Ganga areaof the Upper Ganga Plain.

Others:

These include the Nayar barrage canal, the Tehri Dam canals, Tanda,Dalmau, Bhopauli, Doharighat, Belan pump canals and various smallcanals belonging to Tumaria, Khoh, Baur, Rampura, Lalitpur dams andKotari project.

Canals of Bihar:

In Bihar, particularly in the region south of river Ganga, the rainfallhas been inadequate and erratic leading to frequent recurrence ofsevere famines. Following are the main canal systems of the state:

(1) Son Canal:

A barrage has been built across the Son River neat Dehri from wheretwo canals have been taken out. The eastern canal taking off at Barunwas completed in 1875. This 130 km long canal is called Patna canalwhich irrigates about 3 lakh hectares of land in Patna, Gaya and

Aurangabad districts. The western canal originates from Dehri andfeeds the Area, the Buxar and Chausa branches. It irrigates 3.5 lakhhectares of land in Ara, Shahabad and Bhojpur districts.

(2) Kosi Project Canal:

Under the project a barrage has been constructed across the Kosi Rivernear Hanuman Nagar from which two canals would be taken out toirrigate about 8.73 lakh hectares of cropped area.

The eastern Kosi canal is complete. Its total length is 127 km consistingof Muraliganj, Janakinagar, and Banamanakhi and Agariy branches. Itirrigates about 4.34 lakh ha of land in Purnea, Muzaffarpur, Munger,Darbhanga and Saharsa districts. The western Kosi canal has a lengthof 112.65 km (including 35.2 km in Nepal). On completion it wouldirrigate about 3.14 lakh hectares of land area.

(3) Gandak Canal:

Under the project a long (740 m) barrage has been built across Gandakriver near Triveni Ghat from which a number of canals have beentaken out to irrigate about 14.58 lakh hectares of land in Nepal, Bihar(Champaran, Saran, Chhapra, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Siwan,Vaishali (Bihar), Gorakhpur and Deoria (Uttar Pradesh) districts. TheSaran (66 km), the Tirahut (257 km), Dun (95 km), Nepal east (80.47km) is the important branches of the canal.

Canals of Madhya Pradesh:

Madhya Pradesh states due to its rocky and stony surface are suitablefor tank irrigation. But in recent years well (including tube well) andcanal have gained popularity and account for 53% and 30.3% of the

net irrigated area of the state. Main canal systems are:

(1) Mahanadi Project Canals:

The Mahanadi canals have been constructed fewer than three stagesproviding irrigation to about 3.4 lakh hectares of land. The schemeinvolves construction of barrage across the Mahanadi at Rudri acrossthe Sandur River under Ravishankar Sagar Project, feeder canal, Pairidam and 1,145 km long irrigation canals.

(2) Wainganga Canal:

It takes off from the Wainganga River (length 45 km) to irrigate about4,000 hectares of land in Balaghat, Seoni (M.P.) and Bhandara(Maharashtra) districts.

(3) Tandula Canal:

Under this scheme two earthen dams have been built near theconfluence of the Tandula and Sukha rivers. Canals taken out fromthese are providing irrigation to about 66,000 hectares of cropland inRaipur and Durg districts.

(4) Chambal Project Canals:

This scheme involves construction of three dams. Canals under thisscheme irrigate about 5.15 lakh hectares of agricultural land in

Gwalior, Bhind, Morena and Datia districts. The main branches of thecanal are the Ambah and the Morena.

(5) Barna Project Canals:

The Bama project involves the construction of a barrage across theBarna River (a tributary of the Narmada) and canals which irrigateabout 64,400 hectares of land in Raisen district.

(6) Tawa Project Canals:

Canals originating from the barrage across the Tawa River with totallength of 197 km irrigate about 3 lakh hectares of area inHoshangabad district.

(7) Halali Project Canals:

Under this project canals have been taken out from the barrage builtacross the Halali River to irrigate about 73,500 hectares of croppedarea in Vidisha district.

Canals of Rajasthan:

Rajasthan is deficient in rainfall and falls under arid and semi-aridclimates. Canals have proved to be boon for the state as a result ofwhich sandy patches are yielding good agricultural harvests. Some ofthe important canals of the state are as follows:

(1) Gang Canal:

This canal was completed in 1928 to irrigate 3.4 lakh hectares of landin Sri Ganganagar district. The canal is a blood transfusion from theliving Punjab into the moribund Marusthal. It has helped into the

cultivation of wheat, pulses, oilseeds, rice, cotton, sugarcane and citrusfruits. This canal takes off from the Satluj River near Husainiwala(Firozpur) and has a total length of 1,280 km. It is also called Bikanercanal.

(2) Chambal Project Canal:

Under the Chambal project Gandhi Sagar and Ranapratap Sagar damshave been constructed. Canals taken out from the barrage irrigateabout 2.83 lakh hectares of land in Kota, Bundi, Sawai Madhopur andBharatpur districts. The project is also providing irrigation to thewestern part of Madhya Pradesh.

(3) Jawai Project:

Here a dam has been built across the Jawai River in 1946. The maincanal is 22 km long but its branches are 120 km long. It irrigates 7,690hectares of land in Pali, Jodhpur and Sirohi districts.

(4) Ottu Feeder:

It takes off from the Ghaggar River near Sirsa (Haryana). It is a non-perennial canal providing irrigation to about 51,000 hectares of landin Ganganagar District.

(5) Hanumangarh Canal:

This belongs to the Bhakra canal group which irrigates about 2.3 lakhhectares of land in Ganganagar district.

(6) Indira Gandhi Canal:

It is an ambitious canal project to divert the additional waters of the

Ravi, Beas and Satluj rivers to the dry areas of Rajasthan. The maincanal has a total length of 649 km of which 179 km lies in Punjab andHaryana. Along with distributaries its total length would be 8,000 km,irrigating about 14.62 lakh hectares of land in Ganganagar, Bikaner,Jodhpur and Jaisalmer districts. The project involves construction attwo stages.

The stage comprises 359 km long Rajasthan main canal and 3,000 kmlong distribution system to serve a culturable command area of 5.4lakh hectares. An important feature of this stage is the construction of152 km long Loonkaransar-Bikaner Lift canal, along with its 187 kmlong distribution system to serve a culturable command area of 51,000hectares. The command area is served by 1,524 km long lined watercourses.

The stage II envisages use of 4,938 million cu. m of water. It involvesconstruction of 250 km long main canal, 2,400 km long distributionsystem to serve 5 lakh hectares under flow irrigation and 1,600 kmlong lift system to irrigate 2.6 lakh hectares of area. The lift irrigationwould be provided through Gajner, Kolayat, Phalodi, Pokran andNahar Sahawa lift schemes.

(7) Others:

Other canals include those be-longing to Parvati, Gudha, Morel, Jaggar,Kalisil, Mej, Gambhiri, Bankali, Sareri and Namana projects.

Canals of West Bengal:

West Bengal is a humid state where little irrigation is practiced. Onlysouth-western part of the state needs some irrigation. The state has37.5 per cent of its net irrigated area under canal irrigation. Important

canal systems are as follows:

1. Damodar Project Canals:

Under the Damodar Valley Corporation a 692 meter long and 12 meterhigh barrage has been built up from which two canals have beentaken out. The right bank canal is 89 km long and it irrigates about 4.2lakh hectares of land in Hugli, Asansoi and Barddhaman districts. Theleft bank canal is 137 km long and is used for navigation.

2. Mayurakshi Project Canals:

A barrage (640 meter long and 47.24 meter high) has been constructedacross the Mayurakshi River, a tributary of the Hugli River, nearMarsanjor (Birbhum) in 1951 from which two canals have beenconstructed which irrigate 2.51 lakh hectares of land in Birbhum,Murshidabad and Barddhaman districts.

3. Kangsabati Project Canals:

Three barrages have been constructed over the Kangsabati andKumari rivers to lay down 1,305 iong canals which irrigate 3.84hectares of agricultural land in Bankura and Medinipur districts.

4. Medinipur Canal:

This is a 520 km long diversion canal taken out from Kaise River (nearMedinipur) which irrigates 50,000 hectares of land in Medinipur andHaora districts. It was completed in 1888.

5. Edon Canal:

It is a 54 km long canal taken out from the Damodar River in 1938

which provides irrigation to 10,000 hectares of land in Bardamandistricts.

In Maharashtra there is dearth of major irrigation projects. Insteadthere are small irrigation projects. Canals contribute 20.9% of the netirrigated area of the State.

Canals of Maharashtra:

(1) Mutha Canal Project:

Under this project a barrage has been built across the Mutha River (in1879) at Khadakvasla from which two canals have been taken out. Theright bank canal (112 km) irrigates about 45,000 hectares of land inPune district, while the left bank canal supplies drinking water to Puneand Kirkee.

(2) Godavari Canals:

These canals (length 200 km) originating from a barrage built acrossthe Godavari river irrigate about 57,000 hectares of land inAhmadnagar and Nashik districts.

(3) Nira Canal:

This project consists of a storage reservoir formed on the YelwandiRiver near Bhatagar and construction of two canals. The left bankcanal originates from Nira River at Vir and irrigates 33,400 hectares ofarea in Solapur and Pune districts. The right bank canal (174 km long)irrigates 32,850 hectares in Solapur district.

(4) Pravara River Canals:

A masonry dam 90 metres high was constructed in 1926 across thePravara River at Bhandardara forming the Arthur Hill Lake. Canalsalong the right (148 km) and left (332 km) banks have been takdn outfrom this reservoir to irrigate 34,000 hectares of land in Ahmadnagardistrict.

(5) Bhima Project Canals:

Under these project two dams have been built up across Pavana Rivernear Phagari (Pune), and across the Krishna River near Ujjaini(Solapur) which irrigate about 1.62 lakh hectares of land in Pune andSolapur districts.

(6) Jaikwadi Project Canals:

Under this project dams are being built across Godavari and Sindfanarivers to irrigate 2.78 lakh hectares of agricultural land.

(7) Kukadi Project Canals:

This project involves construction of five weirs at Yodgaon Manikdohi,Dimbha, Badaj and Pippalgaon Jog and laying down of 454 km longcanals so as to create an irrigation potential of 1.56 lakh hectares.

(8) Others:

These include Penganga (1.15 lakh hectares), Nalganga (8741 hectares),and Varuna (96,058 hectares), Girna (54,000 hectares), Gangapur(33,000 hectares) and Krishna (1.12 lakh hectares) irrigation projects.

Canals of Andhra Pradesh:

Canals irrigate about 37.3 percent of the net irrigated area of Andhra

Pradesh. Here inadequate rainfall, level and fertile plain facilitate thedevelopment of canal irrigation in the state. Important canals are asfollows:

(1) Godavari Delta Project Canals:

The Godavari delta project comprises two-weirs-the Dolaishwaramand the Ralli. From these, right bank and delta canals have been takenout to irrigate about 4.5 lakh hectares of land. These canals werecompleted in 1846.

(2) Krishna Delta Canals:

The Krishna irrigation system originates from the dam built across theriver near Vijayawada. It was completed in 1853. It irrigates about 4.5lakh hectares of agricultural land. The system includes Vijayawadaanicut, Sunkesulaanicut and Tungabhadra canals.

(3) Nagarjuna Sagar Project Canals:

The project was launched in 1956. A barrage has been built across theKrishna river at Nandikoda (Nalgonda) from which right bankJawaharlal (204 km) and left bank Lalbahadur (179 km) canals havebeen taken out which have an irrigation potential of 8.95 lakh hectaresof land in Khammam, Krishna, West Godavari (left bank canal),Guntur, Nellore, Nalgonda and Kurnool (right bank canals) districts.

(4) Tungabhadra Project Canals:

Under the project a dam has been constructed across the TungabhadraRiver near Hospet (Karnataka) which irrigate about 4.97 lakh hectaresof area in Mahbubnagar, Anantapur and Kurnool districts.

(5) Rampad Sagar Project Canals:

Under this project a dam has been built over the Godavar River atPolavaram. Canals of the project irrigate about 11 lakh hectares ofland in Vishakhapatnam, Krishna, Godavari and Guntur districts.

(6) Others:

Canals of the Nizam Sagar irrigate about 1.1 lakh hectares of area inMedak district, the Penner canals in Nellore district irrigate 68,000hectares and the Pochampad project about 1 lakh hectares in Adilabadand Karimnagar districts. The Telugu-Ganga Project arising out of anagreement between Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh andTamil Nadu aims at providing irrigation facilities to 3 lakh hectares offamine affected area in Kurnool, Cuddapah, Nellore and Chittoordistricts.

Canals of Tamil Nadu:

Major part of Tamil Nadu enjoys rainfall during winter season whilesummer remains dry. This requires irrigation to make up thedeficiency of rainfall. Canal irrigation is popular in deltaic and coastalareas accounting for 29 per cent of the net cropped area.

(1) Kaveri Delta Canals:

The Kaveridelta has the oldest and the longest (6,400 km) irrigationcanal system in the state. These canals taken off from the Grand Anicut(built in 1889) irrigates about 5.15 lakh hectares of land in Thanjavurand Tiruchchirappalli districts.

(2) Mettur Canal System:

These canals taken out from the Kaveri River (Mettur dam) provideirrigation to 1.8 lakh hectares of land in Salem and Coimbatoredistricts.

(3) Lower Bhawani Project Canals:

Bhawani Sagar reservoir has been constructed over the Bhawani Riverto irrigate 78.917 hectares of land in Coimbatore district.

(4) Periyar Project Canals:

A barrage has been built across the Periyar River and its water istrans-ported to the Suruliyar River (tributary of the Vaigai River)through a 1737 m tunnel. This water is distributed through 432 kmlong canals to irrigate about 40,000 hectares of land in Madurai, andRamanathapuram districts.

(5) Katalai Canal:

The Katalai High Level Canal irrigates 8,300 hectares of land inThanjavur and Tiruchchirappalli districts.

(6) Manimuthar Project Canals:

The Manimuthar is a tributary of the Tamraparniriver over which anearthen dam has been constructed. Canals taken out from this damirrigate 41,694 hectares of land in Tirunelveli district.

(7) Parambikulam:

Aliyar Project Canals-this is a joint venture of Tamil Nadu and Keralastates under which 244 km long canals have been constructed to utilisethe water from eight rivers to irrigate 97.13 thousand hectares of

agricultural land.

Canals of Karnataka:

In Karnataka canal irrigation contributes 41.3 percent of the netirrigated area. Most of these canals have been taken out from theKrishna and Kaveri rivers. Main canals are as follows:

(1) Ghataprabha Project Canals:

This project involves three stages leading to the construction of damsacross the Ghataprabha river at Dhupdal and Hidkal, 114 krri longcanal along the east side, 197 km long canal along the west side andcreation of irrigation facilities for 3.18 lakh hectares of agriculturalland in Belgaum and Bijapur districts.

(2) Tungabhadra Project Canals:

Under the project dams have been built across the Tungabhadra andTung rivers to lay down canals which irrigate 4.97 lakh hectares ofland in Bellary, Raichur, Chikmagalur and Shimoga districts.

(3) Malprabha Project Canals:

The canals taken out from the dam built across the Malprabhariverirrigate about 2.13 lakh hectares of land in Belgaum, Dharward andBijapur districts.

(4) Bhadra Project Canals:

Bhadra project, on river Bhadra, irrigates about 1 lakh hectares of landin Shimoga district.

(5) Upper Krishna Project Canals:

Under these project two dams have been constructed over the KrishnaRiver at Almatti and Siddpur (Bijapur district). Canals taken out fromthese dams (length 392 km) will produce an irrigation potential of 4.25lakh hectares.

(6) Krishnaraja Sagara Canals:

The Visveswaraya Canal, taken off from the Kaveri (KrishnarajaSagara Dam) irrigates about 50,000 hectares of land in Mandya andMysore districts.

Canals of Kerala:

In Kerala canals account for 31.3 per cent of the net irrigated area ofthe state. Although much of the state enjoys sufficient amount ofrainfall its variability is higher along the Malabar Coast. Importantcanals of the state include.

(1) Malampuzha Project Canals:

An 1850 meter long and 38 meter high dam has been built acrossMalampuzha River in 1967 whose canals irrigate 38,527 hectares ofland in Palakkad district:

(2) Balayar Project Canals:

Canals taken out from the barrage built across the Balayar River(tributary of the Koryar River) irrigate about 3,200 hectares of land inPalakkad district.

(3) Mangalam Project Canals:

This project involves the construction of a 27 meter high dam acrossthe Mangalam River to impound 563 lakh cubic meters of water whichis utilised in irrigating 3,400 hectares of land in Malappuram andThrissur districts.

(4) Others-Parambikulam:

Aliyar project irrigates 1.01 lakh hectares; Periyar canals 31,162hectares in Kozhikode district and the Pamba canals 33,995 hectares inKollam district.

Canals of Gujarat:

Gujarat lacks large perennial rivers due to poor rainfall. Canals herecontribute about 19.8 per cent of the net irrigated area.

(1) Ukai Project Canals:

A barrage has been built across the Tapi River near Ukai village.Canals taken out from this barrage irrigate about 1.53 lakh hectares ofland in Surat and Valsad districts.

(2) Kakarapara Project:

Under the project a dam has been constructed at Kakarapara near themouth of the Tapi River from which about 950 km long canals runalong both the banks of the river. These canals irrigate about 2.77 lakhhectares of land in Surat district.

(3) Narmada Project Canals:

It includes construction of a barrage across the Narmada River atNavgaon (Bharuch) and canals so as to irrigate the interfluve area

between the Narmada and Mahi rivers.

(4) Mahi Project Canals:

The project involves two stages under which water from the MahiRiver would be diverted through canals to irrigate 2.75 lakh hectaresof land in the Doab area of the Mahi and Sabarmati rivers.

(5) Dantiwada Project Canals:

This project built over the Banas River provides irrigation to 44 thou-sand hectares of land in Banaskantha district.

(6) Panam Barrage Project:

Canals taking off from the barrage on the Panamriver in Panchmahalsdistrict irrigate about 53,000 hectares of land besides providingdrinking water to Vadodara city.

(7) Karjan Barrage Project:

The Barrage and canals on the Karjanriver irrigate about 72,000hectares of land in Bharuch district.

(8) Sabarmati Project Canals:

The dam across the Sabarmati River in Mehsana district and canalsfrom Vasana barrage near Ahmadabad irrigate about 59,000 hectaresof agricultural land.

The Garland Canal System:

The Garland Project had been proposed by Mr. Dinshaw. J. Dastur, aconsultant engineer. This system will provide irrigation facilities to allparts of the country and to permanently eliminate the vicious flood-drought circle by utilising all sources-rivers, rainfall and snowmelt.

The Project envisages the construction of two mammoth canals, theHimalayan Catchment Canal and the Central Deccan and Southern

Plateau Canal, spanning the length and breadth of the country.

The Himalayan Catchment canal will embrace the foothills of theHimalayas and extend in a sweeping area of 3000 kms. From the riverRavi to Chittagong. It will be 300 metres broad and built at constantelevation of 1,000 metres above the sea level. It will arrest, control anddistribute the waters of the Himalayan Rivers and snowmelt.

The Central Deccan and Southern Plateau Canal would encircle thesouthern and central plateau in a 900 kms- zigzag area beginning withthe Chambal and undulating its way to the outskirts of Cape Comorin.

Every year 860 billion cu. metres of glacial water rushes down theHimalayan slopes, and most of it goes to waste. Under this canal, thisimmense quantity of water will be impounded by the H.C.C.(Himalayan Catchment Canal) and transferred via a series of pipe linesto the C.D.S. plateau canal.

This canal will be built at a uniform height of only 500 metres; and itwill be more than twice as long encircling the entire southern andcentral plateau. Shaped like a giant necklace (garland) this canal willhave 2,900 subsidiary outlets along its length.

It will connect all the monsoon-fed river of the central and southernregion. The H.C.C and C.D.S plateau will be joined at two places by aseries of pipe lines. Due to the 500 metre height difference between thetwo canals water will flow from the H.C.C. to C.D.S. plateau canal byforce of gravity keeping the latter perennially filled with the glacialwaters of the Himalayan catchment.

Although it is over-ambitious, and if it is implemented it will guaranteecontinuous supply of water to all parts of India and it may be possible

to irrigate and cultivate about 2.1 m sq. kms as against only 0.3m sqkms at present.

B. Wells:

Wells provide the most widely distributed source of irrigation in India.A well is a device by means of which water is obtained from thesubsoil. Well irrigation is of importance in: (i) that part of the Gangavalley which is in close proximity to the north-east and easternextension of the Deccan, such as, the eastern districts of U.P.particularly Gonda, Basti, Bahraich, Faizabad, etc. (ii) In Bihar wellirrigation is in vogue in Shahabad, Gaya, Patna, Saran etc. districts, asthese areas lie beyond the command of canals, (iii) Submontaneregions on the eastern and southern sides of the Western Ghats,particularly in Kolhapur, Sholapur. Ahmadnagar and Poona districtsin Maharashtra, and in eastern part of Nilgiri and Cardamom hills,especially in Ramanathapuram, Madurai, Coimbatore and areasbetween Tiruchirapalli and Guntur. (iv) Region of black cotton soilespecially where it is deep as in the Malwa tract of M P. (v) In thevalleys of Narmada and Tapti rivers. In other words, this method ofirrigation is mostly used in the alluvial plains where soft nature of thesoil helps in easy digging of wells. Some or the other type of lift isalways required for using the well- water for irrigation whereas oldmethods like mot and reht are still practised widely in many areas,power driven pumps have become exceedingly popular in most parts.

C. Tube Wells:

Tube wells are common in areas where the water table is rather deep,say, over 15 metres. The sub-soil water is exploited through deep wellpumping. Indo-Gangetic valley and in certain coastal deltaic areas tube

well is common.

(1) The flow of water in the subsoil is adequate to meet the surfacedemand, thus ensuring a stable water table. (2) The depth of the watertable below the ground does not ordinarily exceed 50 ft. (3) For liftingthe water cheap power/ electricity is available over the tract whicheconomises and popularises lifting operations. (4) The area should bein alluvial formations where water-bearing strata are found at variousdepths. (5) The soil should be of good quality so that high costsinvolved in the operation of tube well are compensated.

Area of Tube Well Irrigation:

Tube wells are usually been constructed in the Ganges plain, where alarge basin with sufficient underground water supply with facilities ofreplenishment due to heavy rainfall in the Terai, exist. The water inthis basin occurs as a continuous reservoir which is connected withthe strata below the Terai.

Here tube wells have been developed both on the north having thedepth of 90 to 150 metres and south of Ghagra. The states like Punjab,Haryana, Bihar, and Gujarat have number of tube wells in differentlocation.

These are also very popular source of irrigation in the alluvial plainsof north India where groundwater is plentiful and construction ofwells and tubewells easy. These sources predominate in Gujarat (78.4per cent of net irrigated area), Uttar Pradesh (70.5 per cent), Goa (69.6per cent), Rajasthan (67.9 per cent), Punjab (61.3 per cent) andMaharashtra (61.2 per cent). In Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana.Tamil Nadu and Orissa, wells and tube-wells provides water to 40 to 55per cent of net irrigated area.

D. Tank Irrigation:

Tank irrigation is the most feasible and widely practised method ofirrigation all over the Peninsula, where most of the tanks are small insize and built by individuals or groups of farmers by raising bundsacross seasonal streams.

In West Bengal, Orissa and Bihar tanks are mostly of excavated typeand used also for raising fish besides irrigation. The drawbacksinclude high rate of evaporation and occupation of fertile landparticularly as the depth of most of the tanks is shallow and the waterspreads over a large area. Most of the tanks are non-perennial andsupply water only for one crop in the year.

Areas of Irrigation:

Tanks irrigation is mostly practised in peninsular India includingMaharashtra and Gujarat. Tanks are a special feature of the Deccanbecause: (i) The rivers of the Deccan are not snow-fed and they are notsolely dependent upon the rain waters, (ii) There are many streamswhich become torrential during the rainy season but dry up in theseason when the rain ceases, (iii) The undulating character of theregion together with a rocky bed makes the construction prohibitive,(iv) Moreover, as the hard rocks do not suck up water, we cannot dugwells. But the tanks can be easily made by means of making dams inhollow spaces in which rain water is stored in large quantities fordistribution in dry season, (v) Lastly, the scattered population of thetract also favours the system of tank irrigation to save rain waterwhich could have ultimately flowed to ocean.

Tank irrigation has reached its highest perfection in south, especiallyin Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. State of West Bengal and

Rajasthan too have some irrigation tanks, particularly in theirsouthern and south-eastern regions respectively. Punjab, UP, Biharhave also some tank.

Significance of tanks as source of irrigation has declined and now only6.1 per cent of net irrigated crops get water from tanks. It is easier toconstruct tanks in the undulating peninsular India. Tank irrigation is,therefore, confined to the southern states. Largest net irrigated area bytanks is 503 thousand hectares in Tamil Nadu according to 2009-10data. Tank irrigation is also important in Orissa, Maharashtra,Karnataka, Kerala and West Bengal.

Related Essays:

1. Essay on Important Religious Groups in India (1768 Words)2. 4 Most Important Fundamentals of GATT3. Essay on Important Components of Rituals (289 Words)4. Important Salient Features of General Agreement on Tariffs and

Trade, 19945. Essay on the Important Features of Veerashaivism (966 Words)

6. 5 Most Important Functions of the World Trade Organisation

Essay on Irrigation System in India

What are the Wildlife Acts passed by the Indian Law?Land-Use Statistics of India Useful Notes

No comments yet.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Search...

Popular

Money Is More Important Than Love Essay October 24, 2012380 Words Essay on Corruption in India (free to read) August 7, 20111309 Words Essay on Global Warming: Causes, Effects and Remedies August 7, 2011

Advertisements:

Search More Essays

Search

2015 Worlds Largest Collection of Essays! Published by Experts. All Rights Reserved.

Wholehouse WaterTreatment Solutions

First time in India Softeners with

Shop now