Efficient Irrigation Water use for Food Security: A Case study in Mahi Command Area

The occurrence of droughts of varying intensities is a common phenomenon which limit the availability of irrigation water in reservoirs threatening the bare minimum food production. A detailed study was taken up in Mahi command area under a selected distributary to address the above problem. Based on a long term climatic data, an appropriate water budget was planned and lacuna in the existing cropping and water use systems were identified. Based upon this evaluation, a linear programme(L.P.) modal was developed in this study mat ensures the production of minimum food requirement for inhabitants through a contingent and optimal cropping patterns that require only 40 percent of normal water availability and equitable entitlement. It consists reduction in area by 75 percent in oilseeds followed by pulses and vegetables up to 50 percent. During the normal rainfall years, LP model suggests appropriate land and irrigation water allocation for either maximization of agricultural production(up to 200 percent) or economic benefits (up to 26 percent). However, awareness of water crunch should be raised among user groups for efficient water use and organizations of water cooperatives societies and water regulatory bodies should be strengthened for equitable entitlement of water. The present study at distributary scale is replicable in all parts of project command areas in India and substantially contribute to food security while doing away the associated soil salinity and environmental hazards.