Efficient rainwater harvesting and its diversified utilization in Alfisols of eastern dry zone of Karnataka

Farm ponds were recommended for fragile, dryland ecosystem for harvesting rain water ex-situ in bringing sustainability. Loss of water through evaporation, seepage and percolation are greater from the water stored in unlined farm pond. Five different lining materials were evaluated for comparative efficacy in minimizing seepage and percolation losses. The results revealed that brick lining with pointing the edges using soil + cement (8: 1) or bricks in 1 m² compartment with soil + cement (8: 1) plastering to a thickness of 5 cm over 400 micron polythene can minimize the seepage and percolation effectively. Water stored in the pond can be used for diversified purposes viz., protective irrigation at critical stages, nourishing perennials, kitchen garden, pisciculture and azolla cultivation for bringing sustainability of dryland farmers. Live barriers with nase (2137 kg/ha) or khus (1883 kg/ha) between earthen bunds have larger impacts in improving productivity of finger millet associating with soil and rain water conservation. On-farm evaluation of diversified water use indicated that pisciculture and azolla cultivation improved the economic benefits.