Assessment of irrigation pumping systems in Udaipur district for conservation of electrical energy

Energy being the basic necessity for the economic development of a country, the efficient utilization of the same is of the utmost important. The major requirement of electricity in agriculture sector is in operating pumping system for irrigating the land. There is ample scope to conserve energy even to the extent of 30 to 40 per cent through comprehensive and efficient measures which shall not only be economical but can also be readily adopted. The measures suggested will ensure that the resources available are used with maximum possible efficiencies and wasteful uses of energy are minimized. There is thus an urgent need to find methods for energizing irrigation pumps that are independent from imported petroleum oil or centralized electricity or at least these should consume lesser input energy for the desired output. A field survey was conducted to study the performance of agricultural pumping systems. The energy index estimated for the pump sets was greater than 0.90 and therefore was recommended for rectification measures such as replacement of existing high friction GI pipes and fittings with low friction RPVC pipes, fittings and low resistance foot valves. These partial rectification measures resulted in the reduction of the energy index by 22 per cent and an increase in the system efficiency by 7 per cent in most of the pumping systems.