at Istanbul,Turkey

16-22 March 2009

Theme – 3 : Managing and Projecting water resources and their supply system to meet Human and Environmental needs.

Topic 3.2 : Ensuring adequate water resources and storage infrastructures to meet agricultural, energy and urban needs.

Need for sustaining the multiple uses of Traditional Tank Irrigation systems

in South India.

R.VenkatasamyProgramme OfficerDHAN Foundation, Madurai, INDIA

Presented by

Title:

Session 3.2.2

5th World Water Forum Organised by

Session : 3.2.2

Basics of Irrigation Tanks in India

Earthen bunded small water harvesting structures formed in natural depressions of land to catch and store surface run-off during intensive spells of monsoon rainfall are known as “tanks” in South India.

Ingeneously formed by native rulers & Chieftains over the past several centuries

Session : 3.2.2

Tank System Components - Schematic

view

Session : 3.2.2

Toposheet showing the Tank population

388 Tanks in an Area of 104.66 sq.km

There exist about 1,40,000 tanks in South India

Session : 3.2.2

Source: NRSA

Panaromic Remote Sensing Map of

Cascades of Irrigation Tanks in

India

Session : 3.2.2

Nature of Tank Systems• Smaller in size and larger in number. Amenable

for efficient de-centralised management.• Mostly in semi arid regions of low / medium

rainfall with undulating topography.• Earlier, owned, maintained and managed by

village institutions by collecting revenue through their “multiple uses”. Now owned and maintained by Government.

• Called synonimously by different names in local languages. British Engineers named them as “Irrigation tanks” although they have multiple uses.

Session : 3.2.2

Benefits from a Healthy Tank System

Employment Generation

Food Security

Crop yield doubled (2 assured crops a

year)

Dairy development Improved nutrition (more food, more milk)

Cultural life improved

Increased green and dry and fodder

Fertility of the dry-lands improved

Ground water situation improves electricity will be saved

Increased tree cover

Migration of birds stopped & immigration encouraged

Fisheries development

Sustained availability of water for drinking and agriculture

Effective Soil Conservation

BENEFITS FROM A COMPREHENSIVE TANK SYSTEM MANAGEMENT

Session : 3.2.2

Multiple uses of Tank SystemsTank systems play a vital role in village economy, environment, ecology, culture, etc., as they have multiple uses such as …

• Irrigation, domestic & cattle use, pisciculture, ground water recharge, bird sanctuary, etc.,

• Useful for marginal communities during off season (short term cultivation in tank bed, grazing land for cattle, usufructs of trees, etc.,).

• Collects and stores nutrious silt for using in agricultural lands.

• Flood Moderation.

Session : 3.2.2

Significance of Tank Systems in Water Use

• Synergy in water harvesting as the tanks are connected in chain; the surplus of upper tank collected in lower tank; the command area of upper tank functions as the most effective catchment for the lower tank.

• Higher irrigation efficiency due to smaller distribution network with gravity flow.

• Higher water use efficiency with higher economic and social benefits due to multiple uses of tanks.

Session : 3.2.2

A Typical Tank Cascade

Session : 3.2.2

"These are the monuments of real Kings, who were the fathers of their people; testators to a posterity which they embraced as their own. These are the grand sepulchres built by ambition……..…to extend

Edmund Burke, a British Engineer on irrigation tanks in South India

(1785)

the dominion of their bounty beyond the limits of nature, and to perpetuate themselves through generations, the guardians, the protectors, the nourishers of mankind".

Session : 3.2.2

Present status of Tanks – The Problems

a. Inadquate attention paid by the Govt. due to wider geographical distribution of tanks and poor allocation of funds.

b. Decline in tank-fed agriculture caused by

• Siltation, heavy weed infestation and encroachments in the tank bed and supply channel resulting in poor storage.

• Dilapidated bund, sluices and weir.

• Delinking of tanks in the ‘cascade’ due to encroachment in link channels.

• Extinction of some tanks due to urbanisation.

Session : 3.2.2

Comparison of Tank Irrigated Area, 1952-53 to 1999-2000-India

PeriodNet Irrigated Area (in ‘000 hactares)

GIACanals Tanks Wells Others NIA

1952-53 8613(41.00)

3468(16.51)

6339(30.17)

2588(12.32)

21008(100.0)

23016

1962-63 10568(42.15)

4651(18.55)

7430(29.64)

2420(9.65)

25070(100.0)

28631

1972-73 12983(41.22)

3822(12.13)

12377(39.30)

2313(7.34)

31494(100.0)

38560

1982-83 15808(39.55)

3165(7.92)

18593(46.52)

2406(6.02)

39971(100.0)

51006

1992-93 17247(34.92)

2817(5.70)

25884(52.40)

3114(6.30)

49395(100.0)

65215

1999-2000

17609(31.29)

2916(5.18)

32536(57.81)

3223(5.73)

56285(100.00)

75099

Session : 3.2.2

Revival of Tank Systems – The Solution

• Strong need for reviving and preserving the traditional tank sytems for restoring the livelihood of rural poor & environment.

• Govt. should pay more attention on the rehabilitation of the marvellous tank systems than on the creation / modernisation of larger irrigation projects.

• Need for re-defining the roles of the State, Research & Resource Insitutions, NGOs & the local community.

Session : 3.2.2

Rehabilitation / Revival of TanksA Concept

Use

Silted & Desilted by People

Silted

Encroached & disused

Use

Past Present Future

Use

Encroach-ment eviction & Renovation

Session : 3.2.2

1. Redefining the Role of State

New Role• Rigorous regulation & enabling policy and

empowerment of people’s institutions.• Encouraging market investments.• Technicl and managerial support.• Resource augmentation

Role to be dropped

• Implementation role.

• Outdated legal framework

• Control perspective

Session : 3.2.2

2. Redefining the Role of Research & Resource Institutions

New Role

• Documenting the existing practices.

• Experimentation.

• Opening new frontier

• Outreach & Field oriented reserach

Role to be dropped

• Conventional outlook

• Oudated curriculam and policies

• Exclusive reliance on campus based activites

Session : 3.2.2

3. Redefining the Role of NGOsNew Role

• Understanding people’s needs through committed work and pilot field works

• Enlarging in to research and resource institutional areas

• Liaisoning with Govt. research & resource institutions & people’s organisations

Role to be dropped• Conventional ‘social’ outlook• Ordinary quality staff & programmes• Conventional ‘institutional’ view

Session : 3.2.2

4. Redefining the Role of People Institutions / community institutions

New Role

• Vibrant civil society – sharing governance

• Setting agenda for mainstream institutions &

social auditing of those institutions

Role to be dropped

• Expectations of ‘doles’ & subsidies

• Divisive parochial views abd ‘tokenism’

Session : 3.2.2

DHAN Foundation and its role on Tank Conservation

• One of the big NGOs in India working on major themes of Micro Finance and Water with a reach of 7,00,000 poor families. Believes in building People Institutions & enabling people rather than delivery of services.

• For more than a decade DHAN is making a clarion call to put an end to the decay of the traditional tank systems. Demonstrated the revival of about 700 tank sytems through people institutions.

• Based on the experiences gained, DHAN focuses on water related issues to draw the attention of Govt. & Policy makers.

• Constituted Conservation Council for Small Scale Water Resources to influence the policies of Govt. on water in favour of rual poor. For More visit www.dhan.org

Session : 3.2.2

GLOBAL THINKING

FOR

LOCAL ACTION

Alternative solution

Remains in the concept . .

Let us discuss . .

Thank You