The irrigation crisis

The irrigation crisis

Business Standard / New Delhi August 26, 2005



The Andhra Pradesh government's demand of a special Rs 25,000-crore
package from the Centre for completion of its irrigation projects
should not be viewed in isolation. It is a manifestation of the general
lack of funds for irrigation in the states.

A large number of projects are pending, for want of money, in states
like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and others. As a result, not
only have huge sums of money been locked up wastefully in interminably
on-going projects but their costs have also escalated to unsustainable
heights.

Also worrisome are the consequences for agriculture, of the slow-down
in the expansion of the irrigation; and agricultural output growth has
been decelerating for past 15 years.

In fact, for the first time after the advent of the green revolution in
the 1960s, the average annual growth in food production (all foods
taken together and not cereals alone) has dropped below the rate of
growth of the population.

Equally disquieting is the colossal wastage of water due to the lack of
adequate infrastructure for its storage and gainful use. In Andhra
Pradesh alone, some 1.45 trillion cusecs of water are estimated to have
flowed wastefully to the sea in this monsoon season.

If such wastage continues, it becomes impossible to meet the growing
demand for water, for not only agriculture but also industry,
navigation, domestic consumption and other purposes.

The funds crunch is not only impeding the creation of new irrigation
potential, it is also telling upon the operation and maintenance of
existing irrigation systems. There are huge losses of water due to
seepage in the distribution network, for want of necessary repairs.

Besides, a good deal of water is wasted through over-use in agriculture
and other sectors due to low water charges. The resultant water-logging
is degrading the land and creating other ecological problems.

The net result of all this is rapid deterioration in water-use
efficiency, which has plummeted to 30-40 per cent, against the desired
60 per cent.

What is needed, prima facie, is substantial augmentation of funds for
the water resources sector. Considering the dismal financial health of
the states, the challenge is obvious.

The Centre, too, cannot be expected to bear the entire burden. The cost
of the 460-odd projects that have spilled over into the 10th plan is
estimated at a whopping Rs 86,377 crore.

This year's Union Budget has set apart only Rs 4,800 crore for the
accelerated irrigation benefit programme, and this has specifically
been earmarked for the completion of last-mile projects.

Even if this allocation is doubled next year, it will not suffice.
There is, thus, no escape from raising funds from other sources, and
this is possible only if irrigation projects are made economically
viable through the imposition of realistic user charges.

For this, cost recovery and operation and maintenance funding need to
be made an essential part of budgeting for irrigation projects.
Irrigation was a net revenue-generating sector in pre-Independence
days. It can be made so again if there is political will to achieve
this end result.

One workable method might be to hand over to actual users the task of
maintenance and operation, including levying and collection of water
charges. This has been tried successfully in several places and there
is no reason why it cannot be adopted more generally.

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