Business Plan To Implement Micro Irrigation Technology For Optimum Usage Of Water Resources In Indian Agriculture

 

Analysis Of The Usage Of Water Resources In Indian Agriculture.

The agriculture sector has been a long-standing sufferer in India. The agriculture sector of India is facing a lot of challenges. One of the most concerning challenges of all is irrigation. India uses a staggering 25% of its water resources to grow rice. India is among the most inefficient agriculture producers in the world and all major crops — wheat, sugarcane, cotton — consume large quantities of water. According to a report by the Institute of Water Education (Chapagain & Hoekstra, 2010), the water footprint (the ratio of the total volume of water used to the quantity of production) of rice production in India is 2,020 m 3 a year compared with 970 m3 a year in China and a global average of 1,325 m3 a year. This is an unfortunate inefficiency in the usage of a scarce and precious resource in a country with a teeming population. Food production declined in 2014-15 due to a 12% dip in the monsoons. 

 

This further highlight that ensuring an adequate water supply for agriculture is essential. India has more than 140 million hectares (ha) of net cultivated area, and around 45 percent of the area is irrigated. As of now, just about nine million ha is under micro-irrigation, of which drip irrigated area is about four million ha. The theoretical potential for micro-irrigation in the country is about 70 million hectares (Narayanamoorthy, 2006). Research shows that sprinkler irrigation can use 30-40% less water, while drip can use about 40-60% less water as compared to flood irrigation methods (Narayanamoorthy, 2006; Narayanamoorthy, 2009). Productivity gains due to the use of micro-irrigation are estimated to be in the range of 40 to 50 percent for different crops (Indian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, 1994; Indian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, 1998).

Share of Small And Marginal Land Holders In India

according to Agricultural Census 2000-01, there were an estimated 98 million small and marginal holdings out of around 120 million total land households in the country. The share of marginal and small farmers accounted for around 81% of operational holdings in 2002-03 as compared to about 62% in 1960-61. Similarly, the area operated by small and marginal farmers has increased from about 19% to 44% during the same period. Recent data for 2005-06 shows that the share of small and marginal farmers in land holdings was 83% (Chand et al, 2011). Thus, the small holding character of Indian agriculture is much more prominent today than even before. The average size of holdings in India declined from 2.3 ha. in 1970-71 to 1.33 ha. in 2000-01. It may be noted that 63% of land holdings belong to marginal farmers with less than 1 ha. The average size of marginal holdings is only 0.24 at all India levels. The average size of small holdings is 1.42 ha. Table 4 shows the average size of holdings by farm size. The average size of marginal holdings varies from 0.14 ha. in Kerala to 0.63 ha. in Punjab.

 

Small Farmland Holder’s Profit Deficit

Since the agricultural land holdings in India are segmented and divided into smaller holdings, the income generated from a single small landholding is insignificant in contrast to the irrigation needs of the crop in order to generate surplus output. In general, a small agricultural landholding farmer is extremely financially burdened. It is very difficult for a small farmer to acquire and install efficient micro-irrigation systems. The lands of these small and marginal scale farmers are relatively located close to each other.

 

The Agenda – Centralization

Given the short spacing between small farmlands, these farmlands need to be placed in one group and the operation of the irrigation systems and equipment should be centralized.

The centralization of irrigation systems and equipment will lead to a reduction of the financial burden on farmers. Instead of investing heavily in the irrigation systems, the farmers will only be needed to pay rent for the usage of the irrigation systems. 

 

 

Micro Irrigation - Analysis

The average size of farmland held by small and marginal scale farmers is 1.06 Ha.

The average cost of installing a sprinkler irrigation system per 1.06 Ha is ₹32,500/-

Drip irrigation is ₹1,13,750/-

The cost of installing a sub-surface drainage system with a pumped outlet for drain spacing from
50 to 100 m in light and medium-textured soils varies from ₹85,500/- to ₹61,000/- per ha whereas the
cost with gravity outlet systems for drain spacing from 30 to 50 m in heavy textured soils varies from
₹1,11,500/- to ₹78,000/- per ha, respectively.

To provide micro-irrigation system services to say 50 Ha of land, the pricing is as follows:

 

Irrigation System	Price (₹)
Sprinkler irrigation system	15,34,000
Drip Irrigation system	53,69,000
SSD (Medium soil)	37,00,000
SSD (Heavy soil)	47,50,000

 

Say the company is providing sprinkler and drip irrigation systems,

Say 25 Ha of land requires a sprinkler system whereas the remaining 25 Ha requires a drip irrigation system, the cost of equipment and installation for the above contraption will be ₹34,51,500/-. The initial investment in the equipment can be made on the hire-purchase system from the manufacturer.

FPOs – The Way Out

Farmer producer organizations are associations that guarantee equal profit sharing for the members. In such types of organizations, the members are the farmers who contribute to the organization. Normally a fee is charged in the form of shares in the organization. All the related elements such as water resources, irrigation systems, farm machinery, marketing, and finance are taken care of by the FPO.

 

 

Partnership With FPOs

 

If an effective FPO is formed and the small and marginalized farmers board the company, then the water resources of the member farmers can be utilized efficiently.

A contract can be struck with the FPOs for micro-irrigation system rentals and with the adequate deployment of these systems within the member farmers’ lands, a significant amount of water resources can be saved from being used inefficiently. 

 

Conclusion

It is high time in our nation for the corporates to tie up with FPOs in significant numbers, and implement the micro-irrigation technology within the small and marginal farmers in the country and save the water resources of our nation. With an effective partnership agreement between the FPO and the Corporate, the Farmer’s output can be increased significantly, nearly 300%. With the increase in Farmer’s output, the profits will skyrocket and the implementation of this model will spread all over the nation. With a powerful agriculture sector, the nation will make tremendous progress. Israel Is the best example. They have invested heavily in the agriculture sector and their Agri sector is acting as the backbone for the development of their nation.