Impact of micro-irrigation practices on farmers economy of Kullu district in Himachal Pradesh

Micro-irrigation is introduced primarily to save water and increase the water use efficiency in agriculture. The reduction in water losses in micro-irrigation system over the flood and furrow irrigation method varies from 30–80 per cent and productivity gain by 20–90 per cent in different crops. Keeping in view the present studies were conducted in rain-fed areas under “Farmers Participatory Action Research Programme” (FPARP) during 2008 and 2009 at farmers fields in different locations of Kullu district, Himachal Pradesh, India. The purpose was to compare the impact of conventional methods of irrigation (flood/furrow/ring basin) and micro irrigation techniques (sprinkler and drip) on crop yield and economy of farmers. At 6 different locations, five sprinklers and one drip irrigation system were installed. Cauliflower crop was grown at 3 locations while capsicum, tomato and pomegranate were grown at remaining 3 locations. Results of the study revealed that in fields where micro-irrigation systems were installed, the yield of cauliflower I, II, III, capsicum, tomato and pomegranate increased by 93.11, 78.50, 87.23, 17.80, 35.87 and 41.52 per cent, respectively. Likewise, net returns of the farmers from the respective crops increased by 122.34, 92.30, 110.60, 24.54, 22.91 and 38.09 per cent when compared to the conventional methods of irrigation. It can be concluded from the results that the micro-irrigation system not only saves water but also increases yield of the crops and eventually the net returns of the farmers from the same unit of area as compared to conventional methods of irrigation.