Scaling up Watershed Development in India

1. 1
Scaling watershed development in India
Haveli structure, Birdha village, Lalitpur district, Uttar Pradesh, India
Kaushal K Garg
ICRISAT
Challenges of
the 21st
Century
1545 m3
5177 m3
120 million
ha affected
54.6% population
depends on
agriculture
contributes only
14% to GDP

2. 2
Groundwater use status in India
Details Values
Surface water irrigated area 21 Million ha
Groundwater irrigated area 42 Million ha
Groundwater withdrawal (1960) 25 Km3
Groundwater withdrawal (2009) 250-300 Km3
Number of bore wells (1960) 1 Million
Number of bore wells (2009) 20 Million
Time line
Journey of watershed program in India

3. 3
Impact of watershed programs
0.6
13.2 12.2
2.6 3.9
67.5
0
15
30
45
60
75
<1 1 to 2 2 to 3 3 to 4 4 to 5 >5
Benifit-cost ratio
Watershed(%)
1.9
30.2
8.6
11.1
6.8
41.4
0
9
18
27
36
45
<10 10 to 20 20 to 30 30 to 40 40 to 50 >50
Internal rate of return (%)
Watershed(%)
Components Scope for improvement /Research & development opportunities
Soil conservation
measures
• Field bunding with proper outlet for safe disposal of runoff;
• Tree plantation on field bunds for getting stability and long term income
Water
conservation
Practices
• Consideration of watershed hydrology in designing density of structures
• Technical suitability of structure site;
• Structure quality and Structure Stability criteria
Best Management
Practices &
Capacity building
• Fodder and Livestock components;
• Suitable cultivars; Agronomic management practices;
• Mechanization for reducing Cost of cultivation
Monitoring impact • Land use change analysis; water balance components, modeling
No of watersheds = 636
(Joshi et al, 2008)
Increased Efficiency of Resources for
Sustainable Intensification
 Land
 Water
 Energy
 Nutrients
 Labor

4. 4
Large yield gaps to be bridged:
Evidence from Parasai-Sindh
watershed, Jhansi, UP
Consortium Partner: ICAR-CAFRI;
Funding : Cococola India
Foundation
Impact on water balance components

5. 5
 Significant fallow land brought
under cultivation both in Kharif and
Rabi seasons
 Crop yields increased by 10-70%
Crop intensification
Improved crop yield
Impact on Cropping intensity and crop production
Change in Land use
Significant area of fallow land especially at upstream locations
converted into cultivated land

6. 6
Parasai-Sindh w/s: Impact on annual HH income
Description Before After Diff
Kharif area under cultivation (ha) 968 1057 89
Net income generated - kharif (Rs in million) 13.8 20.3 0.65
Rabi area under cultivation (ha) 797 1083 286
Net income generated rabi (Rs in million) -0.26 185 211
Total net income from Ag (Rs in million) 11.2 38.8 27.6
Buffalo population 950 1300 350
Avg. milk yield (L/day/animal) 6 8.5 2.5
Annual income from livestock (Rs in million) 10.2 21.2 11
Total net income (Rs in million /year) 21.4 60 38.6
Number of households 417 417 -
Average household income (Rs ,000/year) 51 143 92
District Block Villages
Lalitpur Talbehat Pura-Khurdh, Birdha,
Jhawar
Jhansi Babina Imiliya, Rajapur, Amarpur
Jalaun Mahiva Noorpur, Naserpur,
Hydalpur
Hamirpur Sumerpur Saukhar, Nazarpur, Karimati
Mahoba Kabarai Chandpura, Nathupura,
Baniyatala
Banda Thindwari Benda, Amlikaur, Jauharpur
Chitrakoot Karwi Rowli-Kalyanpur, Rasin
Doubling farmers income:
Scaling up interventions in UP Bundelkhand region
Consortium institutes

7. 7
Strategy for Implementation
 Pilot sites: 5000 ha hydrological unit in each district
 Identified partners & constituting the consortium
 SAUs, ICAR-CAFRI, IGFRI, IIPR, BAIF; KVKs; NGOs
 Demonstrations and Field/ Farmers days
 Need based mechanization
 Decentralized water harvesting
 Livestock improvement: AI with sexed semen, feed/fodder
 Convergence of government schemes and other IDC projects
 Capacity strengthening
 Monitoring, evaluation and learning at all levels
 Facilitating market linkages and insurance thru farmer
collectives
Ridge to valley approach of drainage line treatment
DFI UP Bundelkhand project: Rajapur village, Jhansi district, UP

8. 8
Rejuvenating traditional water harvesting system:
Haveli Cultivation
DFI UP Bundelkhand project: Birdha village, Lalitpur district, UP
Farm pond and Field drainage channel
DFI UP Bundelkhand project: Birdha village, Lalitpur district, UP

9. 9
Field bunding/Agroforestry/teak plantation
Targets made of RWH structures
District RWH structure
planned
RWH structures
completed
Storage capacity
created (m3)
Jhansi 10-12 3 40,000
Jalaun 10-12 2 200,000
Lalitpur 10-12 2 50,000
Hamirpur 10-12 2 30,000
Mahoba 10-12 1 5000
Banda 10-12 1 25000
Chitrakoot 10-12 1 150,000
Total 70-84 12 500,000
• Target to create storage capacity by end of the project= 3.5 MCM
• Created storage capacity = 0.5 MCM (i.e., equivalent to 100 check dams of 5000
cubic meter capacity)
• No of filling during monsoon season = 2-3 times (minimum)
• Expected runoff harvesting in 2019-20= one million cubic meter (> 1 MCM)
• Nearly 200 km running length of field cum trench made for in-situ water
harvesting and 110,000 seedlings planted in Kharif 2019-20

10. 10
ICRISAT is a member of the CGIAR Consortium
Thank you!
DFI UP Bundelkhand project: Birdha village, Lalitpur district, UP