Technological Interventions for

Strategic Management of Water

in Conserving Natural Resources

Praharaj Chandra Sekhar

Indian Institute of pulses research (ICAR), India

cspraharaj@hotmail.com

OUTLINES:

Introduction

Context

Need for strategic management of water

How, What, When and Where????

RCT Interventions available and its

introduction

Summary and conclusion

22

mar

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1.8 billion under absolute water scarcity by 2025

2/3rd subject to water stress

World population exceeded 7 Billion in 2011 and would be 8 -10.7 Billion by 2050.

Increased demands on avail. water resource for food, domestic & industrial uses.

Per capita availability of resource declining at a rapid rate. Over 1950, the developing countries

have only 20% of the resource.

Demand for food is set to double (by 2050) to feed the population and without water productivity

gains the water needed will also double.

Rapidly urbanizing developing countries are throwing up new challenges for meeting

waste water treatment needs & pressure on Urban Water Supply is increasing.

Conflicts between urban & rural regions on the sharing of Water and it’s allocation amongst the different uses are

increasing globally.

At the level of nations Rainfall variability and ineffective Water Management is estimated to cost 1/3rd of the

growth potential in agriculture.

Population growth vis-à-vis declining per capita

water availability in India

Comparison of Water productivity

Country Rice Wheat

China 1321 690

U.S.A 1275 849

Australia 1022 1588

India 2850 1654

World 2291 1334

Scheduling of irrigation (few crops and remote in pulses)

Priority areas and crops (More priority to water savers esp.

pulses)

Life saving irrigation on critical stage and water harvesting

Micro-irrigation (Precision techniques (laser leveler etc)

Improved agro-technologies (ridge/raised bed)

Crop cafetaria/diversification (water need based)

Residues/mulching for water conservation

Crop/species/genotype based specificity towards water need

Application of varied management options.

KEY POINTS IN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT OF WATER

Success relies on

Agro-technological interventions

Are pulses the candidate crops for

(water) resource conservation

Unique characteristicsShort, medium and long duration matching in cropping diversityGrown mostly under rainfed conditionsFinds an important place in farming systems adopted by smallholder farmers Grown on mountain slopes to reduce soil erosion Seed protein content (21%) compares well with other grain legumes

Used in more diverse ways than other grain legumes

Dhal (dry, dehulled, split seed used for cooking) Vegetables (green seeds)Animal feed (crushed dry seeds) Fodder (green leaves) Fuel wood and to make huts, baskets, etc. (Stalks) Culture the lac-producing insect (Plants)

Water requirement of various pulses

Crop (Rainy) Water requirement (cm)

Urdbean ( summer) 22 - 30

Mungbean (summer) 20 – 35

Urdbean ( Kharif) 6 – 12

Mungbean (Kahrif) 12 – 15

Pigeonpea 16 – 22.5

Crop (Fall) Water requirement (cm)

Chickpea 12 – 21

Lentil 10 – 12

Rajmash 20 – 25

Field pea 12 – 14

C.D. (0.05)=392

Rainfed DripBr DripPod DripBr+Pod IrrigatedBr+Pod

3133

37083536

37013564

Microirrigation (Drip-fertigation) on pigeonpea Seed yield (kg/ha)

0

5

10

15

20

0 38 47 63 77 94 108 123 138 157 170 186 198 215 231 245

SMC

(%

)

Rainfed

Drip(Br+pod)

SMC (%)

52.5

60.8

51.8

61.3

54.6

S1 S2 S3 S4 S5

WUE (kg/ha-cm) C.D. (0.05) = 4.70

WUE

100 seed weight (g)

11.0 (drip) 10.4 (rainfed)

10.6

16.9

13.2

17.415.1

Rainfed Drip(Br)

Drip(pod)

Drip(Br+Pod)

Irrigated(Br+pod)

AE (kg grain/kg NPK) CD=2.6

Drip fertigation on Agronomic efficiency

PAIRED ROW

Raised bed Raised bed

Pigeonpea (NA-1)

Urdbean (IPU 2-43) or Jowar (MSH-51) at 2:2

3. BBF for water conservation

120 cm 60 cm 120 cm

Irrigation

Scheduling

Pigeonpea Urdbean Jowar PEY NR(INRx’000)

0.4 IW/CPE 2334 448 2112 2864 81.9

0.6 2572 448 2202 3115 91.4

0.8 2438 425 1918 2927 83.7

C.D. (0.05) NS

Intercropping

Sole 2321 - - 2321 66.6

P+Urd (Drip) 2645 433 - 3129 86.8

P+Urd (Fur) 2538 448 - 3039 88.1

P+Jowar(Drip) 2494 - 2029 3284 95.3

P+Jowar (Fur) 2242 - 2116 3070 91.5

C.D. (0.05) 269 NS NS 250 9.6

Irrigation Scheduling: Seed yields of component crops and PEY (kg/ha)

Straw yield of pigeonpea in t/ha; PEY: Pigeonpea Equiv. Yield; Cost on MSP

45.6 46.047.5

49.7

53.354.9

56.954.9

30

35

40

45

50

55

60

Water use (cm) WUE (kg/ha-cm)

Water use and its efficiency (Pegionpea)

45.6 46.0 47.5 49.7

53.3

68.6 71.4 67.9

40

50

60

70

80

Rainfed 0.4 Iw/CPEFurrow

(1)

0.4 Iw/CPEDrip(1)

0.6 Iw/CPEFurrow

(3)

0.6 Iw/CPEDrip(3)

0.8 Iw/CPEFurrow

(4)

0.8 Iw/CPEDrip(3)

Water use and its efficiency (PEY)

IW/CPE ratios (0.4)

Pigeonpea-jowar/urdbean on Raised beds

Supplemental Irrigation at

Critical Stages in Pulses

Crop Critical stages

Chickpea and lentil Branching and pod development

Pigeonpea Branching, Flowering and pod

development

Dwarf Fieldpea Branching, flowering and pod

development

Mungbean and Urdbean

(Summer)

Growth, flowering and pod

development

Mungbean and Urdbean

(Rainy)

Flowering and pod development

Rajmash (Fall) Growth, flowering and pod

development

Laser land levelling

Zero and Reduced Tillage

Bed planting for rice, wheat & pulses

Parachute method of Transplanting (rice)

Crop residue Management

Resource Conservation Technologies

for higher WUE

Laser land levelling• Water Saving 20-30%

• Saving of area 5% (under ditches and dikes)

• Increase in yield by 15-20%

5. Precision Irrigation during fall & summer

Sprinkler irrigation:

Zero /Reduced Tillage Advantages

Water saving 20-30%

Energy saving 80%

Timely Planting

Increased FUE

Decrease pollution

Increase in yield 20%

Bed Planting Advantages

Saves water 20-30%

Less weeds infestation

Saves seed rate 20%

Increased FUE

Increase in yield 20-30%

Bed Planting of wheat

4 rows bed planter

Fresh Beds

Permanent Beds

Planting with raised bed Planters

1400

1600

1800

2000

2200

Flat bed Ridge-Furrow

Raisedbed

1747

1994

2092

Pig

eon

pea

Yie

ld(

Kg

/ha)

15% higher lentil yield than flat bed.

Water savings by 37-50%.

Raised FUE (16.1 %) & WUE(38.3%)

Rice-Lentil system Lentil seed yield increased by 13.2 following

incorporation of residues of both the crops (rice +lentil)

Earthworm population increased by 3-fold inresidue incorporation plots.

Residue incorporation of rice increased SMBC by25-30% over no incorporation (Soil Microbial C).

6. Residue management

Without residue

With residue

0

5

10

15

20

0-15 15-30

Combine harvest Normal harvesting

Residue management on soil water in

rice-mungbean

So

il m

ois

ture

(%

)

Soil depth (cm)

Residue management in rice fallows under zero tillage

Standing residue Mulching

Control

Treatment 0-15 cm 15-30 cm

Standing residue

9.9 10.1

Mulching 10.8 10.4

Control 9.6 8.5

Soil moisture (%) at 60 DAS

Mulching effect in rice fallows under ZT

Chickpea

Lentil

Mulch No-Mulch

In situ Green manuring

75 cm

SunnhempCotton

7. Selection of suitable MachinesCIAE Inclined Plate Planter A.S.S. Bed Planter

ZT Seed-cum-Fertilizer drill

Line sowing: precisely, efficiently

For Zero-Till as well as Prepared Fields

Verstile: can be used as weeder with

minimum replacements

o Adopting suitable cropping systems

involving pulses

o Improving in-situ moisture conservation

through BBF, residue management, green-

manuring etc.

o Direct sowing through surface retained

crop residues

o Water management by proper irrigation

scheduling, use of micro irrigation

methods, laser land levelling etc.

Thus, to sum up water use efficiency can be

improved by:

Realizing global water security CONSERVE WATER

PRESERVE EARTH

ACKNWLEDGEMENT

ICAR, IIPR, FAO and GCCA

Thank you