Your search found 27 records
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048617)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049194)
(1.60 MB)
3 Amarnath, Giriraj; Pani, Peejush; Alahacoon, Niranga; Chockalingam, J.; Mondal, S.; Matheswaran, K.; Sikka, Alok; Rao, K. V.; Smakhtin, Vladimir. 2019. Development of a system for drought monitoring and assessment in South Asia. In Mapedza, Everisto; Tsegai, D.; Bruntrup, M.; McLeman, R. (Eds.). Drought challenges: policy options for developing countries. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. pp.133-163. (Current Directions in Water Scarcity Research Volume 2) [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-814820-4.00010-9]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H049369)
(15.10 MB)
4 Alam, Mohammad Faiz; Pavelic, Paul; Sikka, Alok; Sharma, Navneet. 2019. Underground Transfer of Floods for Irrigation (UTFI): global to field scale assessments. [Abstract only]. In Proceedings of the International Symposium on Managed Aquifer Recharge (ISMAR 10) on Managed Aquifer Recharge: Local Solutions to the Global Water Crisis, Madrid, Spain, 20-24 May 2019. pp.440-442.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049474)
(0.07 MB) (37.0 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049656)
(1.78 MB) (1.78 MB)
The managed aquifer recharge (MAR) of excess monsoonal runoff to mitigate downstream flooding and enhance groundwater storage has received limited attention across the Indo-Gangetic Plain of the Indian subcontinent. Here, we assess the performance of a pilot MAR trial carried out in the Ramganga basin in India. The pilot consisted of a battery of 10 recharge wells, each 24 to 30 m deep, installed in a formerly unused village pond situated adjacent to an irrigation canal that provided river water during the monsoon season. Over three years of pilot testing, volumes ranging from 26,000 to 62,000 m3 were recharged each year over durations ranging from 62 to 85 days. These volumes are equivalent to 1.3–3.6% of the total recharge in the village, and would be sufficient to irrigate 8 to 18 hectares of rabi season crop. High inter-year variation in performance was observed, with yearly average recharge rates ranging from 430 to 775 m3 day-1 (164–295 mm day-1 ) and overall average recharge rates of 580 m3 day-1 (221 mm day-1 ). High intra-year variation was also observed, with recharge rates at the end of recharge period reducing by 72%, 88% and 96% in 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively, relative to the initial recharge rates. The observed inter- and intra-year variability is due to the groundwater levels that strongly influence gravity recharge heads and lateral groundwater flows, as well as the source water quality, which leads to clogging. The increase in groundwater levels in response to MAR was found to be limited due to the high specific yield and transmissivity of the alluvial aquifer, and, in all but one year, was difficult to distinguish from the overall groundwater level rise due to a range of confounding factors. The results from this study provide the first systematic, multi-year assessment of the performance of pilot-scale MAR harnessing village ponds in the intensively groundwater irrigated, flood prone, alluvial aquifers of the Indo-Gangetic Plain.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049930)
(17.40 MB) (17.4 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050021)
(12.70 MB) (12.7 MB)
8 Pavelic, Paul; Sikka, Alok; Alam, Mohammad Faiz; Sharma, Bharat R.; Muthuwatta, Lal; Eriyagama, Nishadi; Villholth, Karen G.; Shalsi, S.; Mishra, V. K.; Jha, S. K.; Verma, C. L.; Sharma, N.; Reddy, V. R.; Rout, S. K.; Kant, L.; Govindan, M.; Gangopadhyay, P.; Brindha, K.; Chinnasamy, P.; Smakhtin, V. 2021. Utilizing floodwaters for recharging depleted aquifers and sustaining irrigation: lessons from multi-scale assessments in the Ganges River Basin, India. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 20p. (Groundwater Solutions Initiative for Policy and Practice (GRIPP) Case Profile Series 04) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2021.200]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H050171)
(3.67 MB)
Pragmatic, cost-effective, socially inclusive and scalable solutions that reduce risks from recurrent cycles of floods and droughts would greatly benefit emerging economies. One promising approach known as Underground Transfer of Floods for Irrigation (UTFI) involves recharging depleted aquifers with seasonal high flows to provide additional groundwater for irrigated agriculture during dry periods, while also mitigating floods. It has been identified that there is potential for implementing the UTFI approach across large parts of South Asia. The first pilot-scale implementation of UTFI was carried out in a rural community of the Indo-Gangetic Plain in India, and performance of the approach was assessed over three years from a technical, environmental, socioeconomic and institutional perspective. The results are promising and show that UTFI has the potential to enhance groundwater storage and control flooding, if replicated across larger scales. The challenges and opportunities for more wide-scale implementation of UTFI are identified and discussed in this report. In areas with high potential for implementation, policy makers should consider UTFI as an option when making decisions associated with relevant water-related development challenges.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050175)
(0.48 MB)
The general perception of canal irrigation systems in India is one of built infrastructure with low service performance. This paper presents an analytical framework, applied to the Sina medium irrigation system in Maharashtra state of India, to study the performance of an expanded water influence zone (WIZ) including a buffer zone outside the canal command area (CCA) influenced by the irrigation system’s water resources. The framework used satellite-based estimates of land-use and cropping patterns. The results indicate that there is hardly any gap between the irrigation potential created (IPC) and the irrigation potential utilized (IPU) in the CCA. The fraction of consumptive water use (CWU) of irrigation is low in the CCA, but almost one in the WIZ, due to the reuse of return flows in the WIZ. Future investments should focus on increasing economic water productivity ($/m3 ) in order to enhance the resilience of the farming community in the WIZ, which is frequently affected by water scarcity.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050317)
(0.40 MB) (411 KB)
This paper proposes scenarios to achieve more crop per drop and irrigation for all in water-scarce irrigation systems, with a particular reference to India. It uses economic water productivity (EWP) and water cost curve for EWP as tools to reallocate irrigation consumptive water use (CWU) and identify economically viable cropping patterns. Assessed in the water-scarce Sina irrigation system in Maharashtra, India, the method shows that drought-tolerant annual crops such as fruits and/or fodder should be the preferred option in irrigated cropping patterns. Cropping patterns with orchard or fodder as permanent fixtures will provide sustainable income in low rainfall years. Orchards in combination with other crops will increase EWP and value of output in moderate to good rainfall years. Governments should create an enabling environment for conjunctive water use and allocation of CWU to achieve a gradual shift to high-value annual/perennial crops as permanent fixtures in cropping patterns.
11 Amarnath, Giriraj; Ghosh, Surajit; Alahacoon, Niranga; Nakada, Toru; Rao, K. V.; Sikka, Alok. 2021. Regional drought monitoring for managing water security in South Asia. In Amaratunga, D.; Haigh, R.; Dias, N. (Eds.). Multi-hazard early warning and disaster risks. Selected papers presented at the International Symposium on Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Disaster Risk Reduction, Online Symposium, 14-16 December 2020. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. pp.465-481. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73003-1_32]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050800)
(0.60 MB)
Drought is the most complex climate-related disaster issue in South Asia and has affected 1.46 billion people with an economic loss of over 7 billion USD in the last 56 years. South Asia is challenged with water, food, and energy security due to growing populations, incomes, resource degradation, and vulnerability to climate change. Monitoring of drought and associated agricultural production deficits using meteorological and agricultural indices is an essential component for drought preparedness. Remote sensing offers near real-time monitoring of drought conditions and IWMI’s has implemented South Asia Drought Monitoring System (SADMS) in 2014 as an online platform for drought early warning and support in drought declaration. This chapter explores the use of composite drought indices implemented in Google Earth Engine (GEE) and evaluates the crop yield variability during drought years. The study provides a rapid overview of drought-prone conditions that could enhance the present capabilities of early warning systems and enable science based policies for addressing water security in the agriculture sector and develop a drought response plan between water supply and demand, significantly increasing the vulnerability of regions to damaging impacts of drought events.
12 Rathod, Roshan; Kumar, Manish; Mukherji, Aditi; Sikka, Alok; Satapathy, K. K.; Mishra, A.; Goel, S.; Khan, M. 2021. Resource book on springshed management in the Indian Himalayan Region: guidelines for policy makers and development practitioners. New Delhi, India: International Water Management Institute (IWMI); New Delhi, India: NITI Aayog, Government of India; New Delhi, India: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). 40p. [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2021.230]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050807)
(17.8 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051297)
(1.37 MB) (1.37 MB)
Sustainable agricultural intensification requires irrigation methods and strategies to minimize yield penalties while optimizing water, land and energy use efficiencies. We assessed, from a silo-based and integrated water-energy-food (WEF) nexus perspective, the performance of irrigation technologies in different agro-climatic regions. Secondary to this, we assessed the impact of adopting systematic approaches such as the WEF nexus on improving efficiency in irrigated agriculture through irrigation modernization. The evidence-based perspectives of silo-based performances individually considered the metrics of yield (Y), water use efficiency (WUE), and energy productivity (EP). The WEF nexus approach applied sustainability polygons to integrate the three metrics into a nexus index representing the holistic performance of the irrigation technologies. Silo-based performance in temperate regions suggests net gains for WUE (+1.10 kg m-3 ) and Y (+6.29 ton ha-1 ) when transitioning from furrow to sprinkler irrigation, with a net loss in EP (-3.82 ton MJ-1 ). There is potential for a net loss on EP (-3.33 ton MJ-1 ) when transitioning from furrow to drip system in temperate regions. The best performance of irrigation technologies in dry regions in water, energy and food silos was achieved by sprinkler, drip and furrow irrigation systems, respectively. Thus, appraising irrigation technologies from a silos perspective promotes individual silos, which renders an unsustainable picture of the performance of irrigation systems. The integrative WEF nexus approach successfully highlighted the trade-offs and synergies in the nexus of water, energy and food in irrigated agriculture. Drip irrigation led all irrigation technologies in WEF nexus performance in dry (21.44 unit2 ), tropical (23.98 unit2 ), and temperate regions (47.28 unit2 ). Overall, the irrigation modernization pathway to drip technology from either furrow or sprinkler systems improves irrigated agriculture’s WEF nexus performance in all three regions for more crop per drop per joule per hectare under climate change. This can promote inclusive and sustainable irrigation development within the planetary boundaries.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051383)
(33.7 MB)
15 Durga, Neha; Mahapatra, Smaranika; Sikka, Alok; Alam, Mohammad; Verma, Shilp. 2022. Suitable MGNREGS [Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme] practices and convergence opportunities for regional development priorities: a compendium. New Delhi, India: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH; New Delhi, India: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 65p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051384)
(29.4 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051439)
(1.27 MB) (1.27 MB)
Increased variability of the water cycle manifested by climate change is a growing global threat to agriculture with strong implications for food and livelihood security. Thus, there is an urgent need for adaptation in agriculture. Agricultural water management (AWM) interventions, interventions for managing water supply and demand, are extensively promoted and implemented as adaptation measures in multiple development programs globally. Studies assessing these adaptation measures overwhelmingly focus on positive impacts, however, there is a concern that these studies may be biased towards well-managed and successful projects and often miss out on reporting negative externalities. These externalities result from coevolutionary dynamics of human-water systems as AWM interventions impact hydrological flows and their use and adoption is shaped by the societal response. We review the documented externalities of AWM interventions and present a conceptual framework classifying negative externalities linked to water and human systems into negative hydrological externalities and unexpected societal feedbacks. We show that these externalities can lead to long term unsustainable and inequitable outcomes. Understanding how the externalities lead to undesirable outcomes demands rigorous modeling of the feedbacks between human and water systems, for which we discuss the key criteria that such models should meet. Based on these criteria, we showcase that differentiated and limited inclusion of key feedbacks in current water modeling approaches (e.g., hydrological models, hydro-economic, and water resource models) is a critical limitation and bottleneck to understanding and predicting negative externalities of AWM interventions. To account for the key feedback, we find Agent Based Modeling (ABM) as the method that has the potential to meet the key criteria. Yet there are gaps that need to be addressed in the context of ABM as a tool to unravel the negative externalities of AWM interventions. We carry out a systemic review of ABM application to agricultural systems, capturing how it is currently being applied and identifying the knowledge gaps that need to be bridged to unravel the negative externalities of AWM interventions. We find that ABM has been extensively used to model agricultural systems and, in many cases, the resulting externalities with unsustainable and inequitable outcomes. However, gaps remain in terms of limited use of integrated surface-groundwater hydrological models, inadequate representation of farmers' behavior with heavy reliance on rational choice or simple heuristics and ignoring heterogeneity of farmers' characteristics within a population.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051497)
(3.45 MB) (3.45 MB)
Study region: The study region is the Kamadhiya catchment (1150 km2 ), located in the Saurashtra region of the western state of Gujarat, India. The region has seen intensive development of check dams (CDs) for groundwater recharge with an estimated 27,000 CDs constructed up until 2018.
Study focus: The impact of CDs on groundwater storage, food production and resilience are assessed for Kamadhiya catchment by estimating and comparing changes, across periods of low and high CD development, in potential recharge from CDs, rainfall trends, and irrigation demand. The analysis is carried out for the period from 1983 to 2015.
New hydrological insights for the region: Groundwater storage gains observed following CD development can partly be attributed to an increase in high rainfall years after several drought years. Groundwater demand for irrigation has increased substantially, outweighing increase in groundwater recharge from CDs. This deficit in supply relative to demand is greatest in dry years, and when considered together with the low inter-annual carry-over storage of the region’s hardrock aquifers, means that CDs capacity to enhance groundwater storage and mitigate the negative impacts of drought remains limited. Findings suggest that a standalone focus on MAR, unless complemented by greater emphasis on management of water demand and groundwater resources more broadly, may not be sufficient to achieve the long-term goals of sustainable groundwater and concurrently expanding agricultural crop production.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051552)
(0.50 MB)
Indus and Ganga Basins (IGB), which spread over 220 million ha and with over one billion population, grapples with multiple risks. Climate change will exacerbate the water-related recurrent disasters of floods and droughts. Variability and extreme events of rainfall and temperature are increasing. Monsoon rains in four months from June to September bring 80% of the total rainfall. Irrigation is critical, especially for dry-season agriculture and for livelihoods and food security. Groundwater depletion, water quality, and environmental issues reached critical points threatening sustainable agriculture in many locations. This paper focuses on innovative water-related adaptation strategies being pilot tested and implemented to reduce the risks and enhance productivity and resilience in the agriculture sector in the Basins.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051879)
(6.74 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052154)
(0.76 MB) (777 KB)
There is increased awareness that the current food system is unsustainable and that transformative research, development and innovation in agricultural water management (AWM) are needed to transform water and food systems under climate change. We provide an overview of research efforts, challenges, opportunities and innovations to improve water resource management and sustainability, especially in the agricultural sector. We highlight how sustainable AWM is central to balancing the needs of a growing population and increasing food demand under increasing water insecurity and scarcity, with environmental and socio-economic outcomes. Innovative technologies are being developed to optimize water use and productivity through sustainable irrigation technologies, irrigation modernization and smart water management. However, these innovations still need to fully address equity, inequality and social justice concerning access to water, infrastructure and the delayed technological advances in the global South. This requires adopting transdisciplinary approaches, as espoused by the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus, to better anticipate and balance trade-offs, optimize synergies and mitigate risks of maladaptation. Through such transdisciplinary approaches, AWM innovations could better consider local socio-economic, governance, institutional and technological constraints, thus allowing for more contextualized and relevant innovations that can be scaled.
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