Groundwater use dynamics: Analyzing performance of Micro-irrigation system - A case study of Mewat district, Haryana, India

Groundwater quality is the key factor defining agricultural landuse in the Mewat district of Haryana, India. A study was conducted to understand on farm water use and management in the district with a view to analyze groundwater development; the primary source of irrigation and related issues in the district. Mewat being a part of hot arid ecosystem and with its diverse physiography; groundwater use is highly variable in the district with rapid decline in fresh groundwater zone to rising water table in inferior quality groundwater leading to intrusion of inferior groundwater to fresh groundwater zone indicating serious threat to the sustainability of groundwater resource in the district. Improving water use efficiency through appropriate technological and policy interventions with an objective to relieve pressure on fragile groundwater appears to be the prime challenge in the district. The study was taken forward to analyse the potential of micro-irrigation system (sprinkler and drip) as a response to improve on-farm water use efficiency and the factors limiting their wide scale adoption in the district. Though both sprinkler and drip have found to be significantly efficient over traditional flood irrigation method they are not widely adopted in the district because of some technical, social and institutional issues.