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Water Productivity in a Rigid Irrigation Delivery System

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  • Noor Zardari

  • Ian Cordery

Abstract

The rotational irrigation water delivery (warabandi) system practiced in the Indus river basin of Pakistan has continued for 100 years. Irrigation water allocated to the farmers under the warabandi system is proportional to farm size and is fixed. This rigid allocation system has been partly justified by its contribution to social equity though this may have been at the cost of economic gains. In order to assess the operation of warabandi’s basic rules, a farmers’ survey was completed from 124 farmers located on five watercourses. A questionnaire was administered to each farmer and farm management data were gathered. As fresh water resources are under stress and becoming scarce their efficient use in all applications should be assured in water allocations. It is shown from the survey results that water allocation based on very limited criteria does not maximize the socio-economic benefits gained from the use of scarce water. Thus, it is suggested that the existence or non-existence of fresh groundwater resources along with other critical variables should be taken into consideration when making canal water allocation decisions. Missed water deliveries due to failure of the canal system appear to be the largest cause of losses. Water charges need to be increased to fund large improvements in canal maintenance programs. It is pointed out that a framework should be developed as a tool to improve water productivity for Pakistan. This should include: consideration of the gross area of a tertiary canal, sensitivity of crop growth stage to water shortage, crop value, bias of allocation towards most water use efficient areas and water use efficient crops, the potential losses from water deficiency. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009

Suggested Citation

  • Noor Zardari & Ian Cordery, 2009. "Water Productivity in a Rigid Irrigation Delivery System," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 23(6), pages 1025-1040, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:waterr:v:23:y:2009:i:6:p:1025-1040
    DOI: 10.1007/s11269-008-9312-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Pereira, Luis S. & Cordery, Ian & Iacovides, Iacovos, 2012. "Improved indicators of water use performance and productivity for sustainable water conservation and saving," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 39-51.
    2. Aditi Bhadra & Arnab Bandyopadhyay & Rajendra Singh & Narendra Raghuwanshi, 2010. "An Alternative Rotational Delivery Schedule for Improved Performance of Reservoir-based Canal Irrigation System," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 24(13), pages 3679-3700, October.
    3. A. Chandio & T. Lee, 2012. "Managing Saline Water Intrusion in the Lower Indus Basin Aquifer," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 26(6), pages 1555-1576, April.
    4. Ramesh Srivastava & Sheelabhadra Mohanty & Ramlal Singandhuppe & Rajiv Mohanty & Madhu Behera & Lala Ray & Deepika Sahoo, 2010. "Feasibility Evaluation of Pressurized Irrigation in Canal Commands," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 24(12), pages 3017-3032, September.

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