Your search found 13 records
1 Mitra, Archisman; Buisson, Marie-Charlotte. 2014. From land reform to pump energisation: a shift in agricultural drivers in West Bengal [Abstract only] In Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). Energy and Water. Abstract Volume, World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden, 31 August-5 September 2014. Stockholm, Sweden: Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) pp.33-34.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H046649)
http://www.worldwaterweek.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2014_Abstract_Volume_web.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046649.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046649.pdf
(0.06 MB) (1.17 MB)
Introduction and objectives: West Bengal is one of the few Indian states which implemented land reforms, called “Operation Barga” in 1978. The spectacular agricultural growth witnessed in the 1980’s and early 1990’s is attributed by many in the literature to Operation Barga. Nevertheless, it has not been the sole driver of this growth. Indeed in West Bengal, pump electrification rate for groundwater irrigation follows a very similar trajectory as the agricultural growth rate. Our purpose is to estimate the extent to which pump electrification has contributed towards West Bengal’s agricultural growth, by providing farmers a cost effective way (compared to diesel) to access groundwater.
Methodology approach: Based on secondary data from government sources we built a 14 years panel database for 15 districts of West Bengal. Therefore, our approach uses inter-district and yearly variations in the pump electrification rate to measure its effect on agricultural productivity. Our main empirical results are based on regression analysis at the district level. The impact of pump electrification rate is estimated on rice (Aman and Boro) yields and areas, controlling for other timevarying variables including input use, rainfall, road-access, and land-reform. We also examine the trends in groundwater level to understand the sustainability of pump energisation and agricultural growth.
Analysis, results, conclusions and recommendation: The results indicate the positive and significant effect of pump electrification on agricultural output and areas over the period from 1994-2007. By this time, Operation Barga had reached a peak and the intensity of land reform in the State was stagnant. Indeed, pump energisation took over land reform as a driver of agricultural growth. We note that the effect of pump energisation is more pronounced for boro cultivation which is a water intensive crop cultivated in the dry season and thus requiring intensive irrigation. This result argues that pump electrification (with an advantageous flat tariff rate before 2007) improved the physical and economical access to the water market, which in turn made boro cultivation viable for a lot of farmers. In a context where in West Bengal, most farmers are small and do subsistence farming, increased boro production goes a long way in ensuring food security for millions of poor farmers. These results are of particular interest in view of the recent changes in West Bengal’s policy of groundwater use. First in 2007, the tariff structure of agricultural electric connections has been changed from a flat to a metered tariff. Then starting in 2011, getting electric connection for irrigation purposes had been made easier through the removal of administrative permit requirement in areas with sustainable water tables and through a subsidy for the investment cost. These policies are in parallel accompanied by a new boost in the number of pumps electrified since 2007. Recognising the role of pump electrification in the agricultural growth history of West Bengal therefore helps us to understand the potential impact of these new policies.
Methodology approach: Based on secondary data from government sources we built a 14 years panel database for 15 districts of West Bengal. Therefore, our approach uses inter-district and yearly variations in the pump electrification rate to measure its effect on agricultural productivity. Our main empirical results are based on regression analysis at the district level. The impact of pump electrification rate is estimated on rice (Aman and Boro) yields and areas, controlling for other timevarying variables including input use, rainfall, road-access, and land-reform. We also examine the trends in groundwater level to understand the sustainability of pump energisation and agricultural growth.
Analysis, results, conclusions and recommendation: The results indicate the positive and significant effect of pump electrification on agricultural output and areas over the period from 1994-2007. By this time, Operation Barga had reached a peak and the intensity of land reform in the State was stagnant. Indeed, pump energisation took over land reform as a driver of agricultural growth. We note that the effect of pump energisation is more pronounced for boro cultivation which is a water intensive crop cultivated in the dry season and thus requiring intensive irrigation. This result argues that pump electrification (with an advantageous flat tariff rate before 2007) improved the physical and economical access to the water market, which in turn made boro cultivation viable for a lot of farmers. In a context where in West Bengal, most farmers are small and do subsistence farming, increased boro production goes a long way in ensuring food security for millions of poor farmers. These results are of particular interest in view of the recent changes in West Bengal’s policy of groundwater use. First in 2007, the tariff structure of agricultural electric connections has been changed from a flat to a metered tariff. Then starting in 2011, getting electric connection for irrigation purposes had been made easier through the removal of administrative permit requirement in areas with sustainable water tables and through a subsidy for the investment cost. These policies are in parallel accompanied by a new boost in the number of pumps electrified since 2007. Recognising the role of pump electrification in the agricultural growth history of West Bengal therefore helps us to understand the potential impact of these new policies.
2 Mukherji, Aditi; Buisson, Marie-Charlotte; Mitra, Archisman; Banerjee, P. S.; Chowdhury, S. D. 2020. Does increased access to groundwater irrigation through electricity reforms affect agricultural and groundwater outcomes?: evidence from West Bengal, India. Final project report submitted to the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 64p.
Groundwater irrigation ; Water availability ; Electricity supplies ; Reforms ; Electrification ; Pumps ; Agricultural development ; Cropping patterns ; Crop yield ; Rice ; Share cropping ; Monsoon climate ; Water market ; Tariffs ; Energy consumption ; Tube wells ; Water policy ; Groundwater table ; Farmers ; Women's participation ; Villages ; Socioeconomic environment ; Migration ; Econometrics / India / West Bengal
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H049869)
(6.21 MB)
3 Mitra, Archisman; Alam, Mohammad Faiz; Yashodha, Yashodha. 2021. Solar irrigation in Bangladesh: a situation analysis report. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 39p. [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2021.216]
Solar energy ; Groundwater irrigation ; Business models ; Energy generation ; Sustainability ; Tube wells ; Pumps ; Greenhouse gas emissions ; Seasonal cropping ; Farmers / Bangladesh
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050618)
(2.41 MB)
4 Mitra, Archisman; Balasubramanya, Soumya; Brouwer, R. 2023. Can cash incentives modify groundwater pumping behaviors? Evidence from an experiment in Punjab. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 105(3):861-887. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/ajae.12340]
Groundwater level ; Pumping ; Incentives ; Agriculture ; Electricity supplies ; Energy consumption ; Irrigation ; Nexus approaches ; Pricing ; Farmers ; Groundwater extraction ; Rice ; Monsoons ; Pilot projects / India / Punjab / Fatehgarh Sahib / Hoshiarpur / Jalandhar
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051376)
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ajae.12340
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051376.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051376.pdf
(0.91 MB) (927 KB)
As groundwater levels steadily decline in India, authorities are concerned about reducing extraction for irrigation purposes without jeopardizing food security. Very low or zero prices for electricity and water in agriculture is partly responsible for overextraction, but charging higher prices is politically not feasible. In this study, we describe the results of a pilot scheme implemented in Punjab, India, where farmers who enrolled were allocated a monthly entitlement of electricity units and compensated for unused electricity. Eight hours of uninterrupted daytime electricity supply were also provided under the scheme instead of the usual mix of daytime and night-time supply. Analyzing data from a cross-sectional farm household survey and instrumenting for enrollment, we find that self-reported hours of irrigation for enrolled farmers were significantly lower than for non-enrolled ones, with no impact on rice yields. We also find a reduction in monthly electricity consumption at electricity-feeder level due to the pilot scheme using the synthetic control method. Our results suggest that the combination of daytime electricity provision and cash incentives for unused electricity has the potential to incentivize farmers to reduce electricity consumption and irrigation hours by at least 7.5% and up to 30% without impacting paddy yields.
5 Alam, Mohammad Faiz; Durga, Neha; Sikka, Alok; Verma, Shilp; Mitra, Archisman; Amarasinghe, Upali; Mahapatra, Smaranika. 2022. Agricultural Water Management (AWM) typologies: targeting land-water management interventions towards improved water productivity. New Delhi, India: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH; New Delhi, India: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 29p.
Agriculture ; Water management ; Land ; Water productivity ; Yield gap ; Water availability ; Water security ; Groundwater ; Aquifers ; Water conservation ; Watershed management / India
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051383)
(33.7 MB)
6 Balasubramanya, S.; Buisson, Marie-Charlotte; Mitra, Archisman; Stifel, D. 2023. Price, credit or ambiguity? Increasing small-scale irrigation in Ethiopia. World Development, 163:106149. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.106149]
Small-scale irrigation ; Smallholders ; Farmer-led irrigation ; Groundwater irrigation ; Pumps ; Prices ; Credit ; Boreholes ; Water drilling ; Taxes ; Loans / Africa South of Sahara / Ethiopia / Amhara / Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051554)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X22003394/pdfft?md5=77d5c3eab1cf338b2c855edce5cc7cc1&pid=1-s2.0-S0305750X22003394-main.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051554.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H051554.pdf
(1.75 MB) (1.75 MB)
Governments in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are keen to expand irrigation to improve food security and are placing particular emphasis on adoption and use of smallholder private groundwater irrigation. Yet private irrigation is a multi-stage technology, the adoption of which is affected by fiscal support and extension services offered on different investment stages but also by uncertainties around actions that need to be undertaken in these stages. Groundwater-based irrigation in Ethiopia presents a case where policy has focused on fiscally easing the purchase of pumps while considerable ambiguity (unquantifiable uncertainty) exists around the outcomes of drilling boreholes (reaching water). In this paper, we examine farmers’ willingness to adopt smallholder private irrigation packages in response to lower pump prices following tax breaks, loan availability, and reduction in ambiguities related to borehole drilling, using a discrete choice experiment (DCE) in two districts of Ethiopia. The results indicate that the provision of loans and reduction in ambiguities related to well drilling have the greatest effect on the probability of farmers adopting irrigation packages. Lowering pump prices has the smallest effect. Pump-type has a small effect, with energized pumps preferred over manual ones. In exploring heterogeneity in preferences, we find that farmers without irrigated plots and those with greater market access have a greater preference for the provision of loans, while those with greater market access also have greater preferences for reductions in well drilling ambiguities. The results of this choice experiment suggest that reducing ambiguities around well drilling (initial investments) is an essential and cost-effective step toward expanding groundwater-based irrigation in Ethiopia.
7 Buisson, Marie-Charlotte; Mitra, Archisman; Hounsa, T.; Habib, A.; Mukherji, Aditi. 2022. Adaptation co-benefits of solar irrigation: evidence from Bangladesh. New Delhi, India: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on Transforming Agrifood Systems in South Asia (TAFSSA); Solar Irrigation for Agricultural Resilience (SoLAR). 9p.
Solar powered irrigation systems ; Pumps ; Adaptation ; Farmers ; Food security ; Irrigation practices ; Groundwater ; Climate change mitigation / South Asia / Bangladesh
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051630)
(1.00 MB)
The mitigation benefits of solar irrigation pumps (SIPs), when those SIPs replace diesel pumps, are well understood. What is not equally known are the adaptation co-benefits of SIPs. This brief evaluates the co-benefits of using SIPs instead of widely used diesel pumps for farmers in Bangladesh. It estimates the impact of access to SIP on household and crop levels outcomes for improving farmer livelihoods and food security. In doing so, it explores the potential pathways of these impacts.
8 Buisson, Marie-Charlotte; Mitra, Archisman; Osmani, Z.; Habib, A.; Mukherji, Aditi. 2023. Impact assessment of Solar Irrigation Pumps (SIPs) in Bangladesh: a baseline technical report. New Delhi, India: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 75p. [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2022.230]
Solar powered irrigation systems ; Pumps ; Impact assessment ; Solar energy ; Energy generation ; Gender equity ; Social inclusion ; Cropping patterns ; Irrigation practices ; Water extraction ; Tube wells ; Climate-smart agriculture ; Business models ; Tariffs ; Costs ; Tenant farmers ; Training ; Seasonal cropping ; Cultivated land ; Plot size ; Food security ; Public-private partnerships ; Villages ; Household surveys ; Socioeconomic environment ; Greenhouse gas emissions ; Diesel oil / Bangladesh
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051815)
(3.44 MB)
9 Taneja, Garima; Katyaini, S.; Bhattacharjee, Suchiradipta; Chaturvedi, K.; Mitra, Archisman; Verma, Shilp; Bassi, N. 2023. Proceedings of the Workshop of the Stakeholder Consultation on Policy Coherence among Food, Land, and Water Systems in India, New Delhi, India, 16 June 2023. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies (NPS). 10p.
Food systems ; Land resources ; Water systems ; Policy coherence ; Stakeholders ; State intervention ; Government ; Development programmes ; Livelihoods ; Sustainability / India
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052104)
(803 KB)
Under the CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies (NPS), International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and Council for Energy, Environment, and Water (CEEW) jointly organized a National Stakeholder Workshop on “Policy Coherence for Food, Land, and Water” in India on 16th June 2023 at India Habitat Center in New Delhi. Guided by NITI Aayog, an apex public policy think tank of the Government of India, IWMI and CEEW researched the policy landscape at the national level in the food, land, and water (FLW) sectors, shortlisting seven central government schemes to understand ways to strengthen policy coherence and impact. The workshop was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Jal Shakti, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, NITI Aayog and 17 government and civil society organizations working in the food, land, and water sectors. Under the able guidance of Debashree Mukherjee (Special Secretary, Ministry of Jal Shakti) and Avinash Mishra (Advisor, NITI Aayog), the participants discussed the study’s key recommendations, existing institutional mechanisms to catalyze coherence, harnessing synergies and balancing trade-offs across the food, land, and water sectors.
10 Mitra, Archisman; Buisson, Marie-Charlotte; Osmani, A. Z.; Mukherji, A. 2024. Unleashing the potential of solar irrigation in Bangladesh: key lessons from different implementation models. Environmental Research Letters, 19(1):014024. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ad0eaf]
Solar powered irrigation systems ; Pumps ; Business models ; Energy ; Nexus approaches ; Groundwater ; Sustainability ; Financing ; Equity / Bangladesh
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052476)
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ad0eaf/pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052476.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052476.pdf
(2.02 MB) (2.02 MB)
The transition to solar-powered irrigation in South Asia offers an opportunity to cut greenhouse gas emissions and reduce dependency on expensive diesel. However, appropriate institutional and financial models are required to scale up this technology. Three different solar irrigation pump (SIP) implementation modalities coexist in Bangladesh, providing a good opportunity to evaluate and gain insightful knowledge on the solarization process. These conclusions are also applicable to neighboring countries dealing with comparable problems. The three models are (i) community-managed SIP model, (ii) individual ownership model, and (iii) fee-for-service model. In this article, we argue that the fee-for-service model involving a market-based approach and public-private partnership is the most promising in terms of addressing two main challenges in solarization, i.e. high capex financing requirement and generation of sufficient demand. In terms of achieving equity in SIP access and groundwater sustainability, all three models have their respective pros and cons. However, the financial sustainability of SIPs is under threat due to the significant project costs. It is imperative to expedite the integration of SIPs with the national power grid while implementing supportive government policies. This includes enhancing buy-back tariffs and introducing net-metering options to ensure long-term sustainability.
11 Khadka, Manohara; Uprety, Labisha; Shrestha, Gitta; Shakya, Shristi; Mitra, Archisman; Mukherji, Aditi. 2024. Can water, energy, and food policies in support of solar irrigation enable gender transformative changes? Evidence from policy analysis in Bangladesh and Nepal. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 7:1159867. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2023.1159867]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052566)
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2023.1159867/pdf?isPublishedV2=False
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052566.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H052566.pdf
(5.11 MB) (5.11 MB)
Solar irrigation pumps (SIPs) are emerging as a popular technology to address water, energy, and climate change challenges in South Asia while enhancing livelihoods and food security. SIPs are deemed to be a women-friendly renewable energy technology (RET) due to their design, operating system, and safety. While the gender dimensions of natural resources are well documented, the extent to which the water, energy, and food (WEF) policies—including policies to promote SIP technologies in the countries of South Asia—conceptualize and operationalize gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) is not well understood. Therefore, in this study, we reviewed 39 WEF sectoral policies of Bangladesh and Nepal by adopting a gender-transformative analysis approach to rank the policies on a continuum ranging from a scale of 0–3 (denoting gender-unaware, gender-aware, gender-responsive, and gendertransformative). We found that the governments in both countries commit to gender equality and women’s advancement in their WEF sector policies, institutions, and decision-making by ensuring gender and justice principles in their constitutions and national development frameworks. However, these higher-level aspirational principles are not always operationalized in the WEF sector policies. We found that the WEF policies are aware of the need to include GESI and social equity in sectoral programming, yet operational rules for their implementation often fail to challenge structural barriers. Such barriers hinder women and marginalized groups from participating in and benefiting from WEF policies, including the deployment of SIP technologies. This calls for a transformation not only in project implementation but also in the policymaking processes of WEF sectors in the South Asian region.
12 Taneja, Garima; Negi, U.; Shukla, S.; Joshi, T.; Neog, K.; Katyaini, S.; Mitra, Archisman; Bhattacharjee, Suchiradipta; Bassi, N.; Verma, Shilp. 2023. Proceedings of the State-level Consultation Workshop on Policy Coherence in the Food, Land, and Water Systems: Case Study of Odisha, India, Odisha, India, 14 December 2023. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies. 17p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052667)
(909 KB)
International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) organized a state consultation workshop on 14 December 2023 on ‘Policy Coherence in Food, Land, and Water (FLW) Systems: A case study of Odisha’ at Bhubaneswar as a part of the CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies Initiatives (NPS). The Food, Land and Water (FLW) project aims to identify key state-level policies in the food, land, and water systems that have a practical scope for improving coherence and hold most potential for creating an impact. The workshop was organized in partnership with the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment, Government of Odisha.
13 Mitra, Archisman; Alam, Mohammad Faiz; Sikka, Alok; Mahapatra, Smaranika. 2024. Facilitating agricultural growth in Odisha, India, through improved irrigation efficiency and access to water. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on National Policies and Strategies. 6p.
Agricultural growth ; Irrigation efficiency ; Water availability ; Water-use efficiency ; Groundwater irrigation ; Surface water ; Rainwater harvesting ; Water resources ; Energy ; Investment ; Sustainable development / India / Odisha
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052700)
(814 KB)
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