Administrative and Institutional Framework for Pim in India Vis-À-VIs Japan

During pre independence era, Indian irrigation sources were mainly confined to harvesting ponds, diverting rain water through inundation canals, or dug wells in shallow aquifers. During mid-nineteenth century, the British government decided to promote irrigation on Indian sub-continent in a systematic manner. With the onset of many famines and subsequently, a number of famine commissions recommended the development of various irrigation works to contain famines. Moreover, First Irrigation Commission (1901) considered development of assured irrigation system as means of protection against famine. By 1950, about 22 Million Hectares (MHa) of Net Irrigated Area (NIA) was already developed. Prior to Government of India Act (1935), irrigation was federal subject but this Act brought radical changes in the administration of irrigation projects and jurisdiction of irrigation and drainage was shifted to the provincial level, with the federal character of Irrigation to be considered only in the case of inter-state water disputes. This arrangement is continued till now as the legislative and functional jurisdiction of the development and management of water lies with the state governments while the central government to step in only in the case of inter-state rivers. During initial Five Year Plans, main focus remained on irrigation infrastructure development (Civil works, Dams and Distribution system) in the decade of 1960s. State of Punjab and neighboring States started a movement call ‘Green Revolution’ which capacitated India to move forward in achieving the goals of food security for all from a grain deficient nation. Enthused by very promising results from Green Revolution, there were substantial focus on on-farm development and improved agricultural practices during decades of 1970s and 1980s. Though Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM) practices were prevalent in many parts of the country ever since 1960s, it forayed into Indian irrigation sector in a big way in 1990s. Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh are leading States in this endeavor. Due to inadequate funding for O&M and various other factors, the performance of irrigation infrastructure started declining and consequently led to low Water Use Efficiency (WUE) and unsustainability. Ever since beginning, PIM has been considered as potential tool for resolving problems of Indian irrigation sector. Despite numerous efforts from many quarters, PIM has yet to take the centre stage in Indian irrigation system. Japan has implemented concepts of PIM very meticulously and immensely successfully. This paper explores various aspects of PIM in comparison to Japanese system and accordingly proposes a way forward to evolve a pragmatic approach for PIM in Indian scenario.