Your search found 22 records
1 Maheshwari, B.. 2000. Issues and challenges of water use and management in Australia. In Proceedings of the International Symposium on Lowland Technology, Saga University, Saga, Japan, 4-6 October 2000. pp.307-314.
Water management ; Irrigated farming ; Runoff ; Technology transfer ; Water use efficiency ; River basins ; Legislation / Australia / Murray-Darling Basin / New South Wales
(Location: IWMI-HQ Call no: P 5735 Record No: H028346)
2 Maheshwari, B.. 1998. SWAG - Sustainable water use in agriculture. Richmond, NSW, Australia: University of Western Australia. 1 CD.
(Location: IWMI-HQ Call no: CD Col Record No: H035491)
3 Brainwood, M. A.; Burgin, S.; Maheshwari, B.. 2004. Temporal variations in water quality of farm dams: Impacts of land use and water sources. Agricultural Water Management, 70(2):151-175.
Dams ; Small scale systems ; Water quality ; Runoff ; Land use / Australia / New South Wales / Raglan
(Location: IWMI-HQ Call no: PER Record No: H036082)
4 Maheshwari, B.; Connellan, G. (Eds.) 2005. Proceedings of the National Workshop on Role of Irrigation in Urban Water Conservation: Opportunities and Challenges, Sydney, Australia, 28-29 October 2004. Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia: Cooperative Research Centre for Irrigation Futures (CRCIF). 79p. (CRC IF Publication 2005/1)
Water resources ; Water management ; Water conservation ; Water use efficiency ; Irrigation ; Urban areas ; Irrigation efficiency ; Horticulture ; Landscape ; Research ; Climate change ; Case studies / Australia / Melbourne
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: 631.7 G922 MAH Record No: H046455)
http://www.irrigationfutures.org.au/imagesDB/news/UrbanWorkshopProcOct2004(1).pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046455.pdf
https://vlibrary.iwmi.org/pdf/H046455.pdf
(0.87 MB) (888 KB)
5 Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.) 2014. The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. 489p. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
Water security ; Food security ; Food production ; Food supply ; Energy conservation ; Agriculture ; Periurban areas ; Urban areas ; Urbanization ; Rural areas ; Hydrological cycle ; Models ; Sustainable development ; Social aspects ; Water footprint ; Water supply ; Water use ; Water demand ; Water availability ; Catchment areas ; Solar energy ; Carbon cycle ; Sanitation ; Health hazards ; Malnutrition ; Milk production ; Decentralization ; Wastewater management ; Wastewater treatment ; Excreta ; Waste treatment ; Nutrients ; Horticulture ; Labour mobility ; Climate change ; Knowledge management ; Greenhouse gases ; Emission reduction ; Land use ; Biodiversity ; Case studies / India / Australia / Ghana / Iran / West Africa / Ethiopia / Uganda / Africa South of Sahara / Senegal / Bangladesh / Melbourne / Tamale / Shiraz / Sydney / Addis Ababa / Accra / Hyderabad / Kampala / Dakar / Dhaka / Udaipur / Bharatpur / Tigray Region / Rajasthan / Rajsamand District / South Creek Catchment
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI, e-copy SF Record No: H046685)
(10.11 MB)
6 Malano, H.; Maheshwari, B.; Singh, V. P.; Purohit, R.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. 2014. Challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. In Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.). The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. pp.3-10. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H046686)
(2.44 MB)
7 Maheshwari, B.; Varua, M.; Ward, J.; Packham, R.; Chinnasamy, Pennan; Dashora, Y.; Dave, S.; Soni, P.; Dillon, P.; Purohit, R.; Hakimuddin; Shah, Tushaar; Oza, S.; Singh, P.; Prathapar, Sanmugam; Patel, A.; Jadeja, Y.; Thaker, B.; Kookana, R.; Grewal, H.; Yadav, K.; Mittal, H.; Chew, M.; Rao, P. 2014. The role of transdisciplinary approach and community participation in village scale groundwater management: insights from Gujarat and Rajasthan, India. Water, 6(11):3386-3408. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/w6113386]
Community involvement ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater recharge ; Water table ; Water use ; Sustainability ; Watersheds ; Rain ; Villages ; Farmers ; Households ; Living standards ; Socioeconomic environment ; Gender / India / Gujarat / Rajasthan / Meghraj watershed / Dharta watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H046716)
(1.38 MB) (1.39 MB)
Sustainable use of groundwater is becoming critical in India and requires effective participation from local communities along with technical, social, economic, policy and political inputs. Access to groundwater for farming communities is also an emotional and complex issue as their livelihood and survival depends on it. In this article, we report on transdisciplinary approaches to understanding the issues, challenges and options for improving sustainability of groundwater use in States of Gujarat and Rajasthan, India. In this project, called Managed Aquifer Recharge through Village level Intervention (MARVI), the research is focused on developing a suitable participatory approach and methodology with associated tools that will assist in improving supply and demand management of groundwater. The study was conducted in the Meghraj watershed in Aravalli district, Gujarat, and the Dharta watershed in Udaipur district, Rajasthan, India. The study involved the collection of hydrologic, agronomic and socio-economic data and engagement of local village and school communities through their role in groundwater monitoring, field trials, photovoice activities and education campaigns. The study revealed that availability of relevant and reliable data related to the various aspects of groundwater and developing trust and support between local communities, NGOs and government agencies are the key to moving towards a dialogue to decide on what to do to achieve sustainable use of groundwater. The analysis of long-term water table data indicated considerable fluctuation in groundwater levels from year to year or a net lowering of the water table, but the levels tend to recover during wet years. This provides hope that by improving management of recharge structures and groundwater pumping, we can assist in stabilizing the local water table. Our interventions through Bhujal Jankaars (BJs), (a Hindi word meaning “groundwater informed” volunteers), schools, photovoice workshops and newsletters have resulted in dialogue within the communities about the seriousness of the groundwater issue and ways to explore options for situation improvement. The BJs are now trained to understand how local recharge and discharge patterns are influenced by local rainfall patterns and pumping patterns and they are now becoming local champions of groundwater and an important link between farmers and project team. This study has further strengthened the belief that traditional research approaches to improve the groundwater situation are unlikely to be suitable for complex groundwater issues in the study areas. The experience from the study indicates that a transdisciplinary approach is likely to be more effective in enabling farmers, other village community members and NGOs to work together with researchers and government agencies to understand the groundwater situation and design interventions that are holistic and have wider ownership. Also, such an approach is expected to deliver longer-term sustainability of groundwater at a regional level.
8 Chinnasamy, Pennan; Misra, Gourav; Shah, Tushaar; Maheshwari, B.; Prathapar, Sanmugam. 2015. Evaluating the effectiveness of water infrastructures for increasing groundwater recharge and agricultural production – a case study of Gujarat, India. Agricultural Water Management, 158:179-188. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2015.05.009]
Groundwater recharge ; Agricultural production ; Water storage ; Water availability ; Watersheds ; Remote sensing ; Investment ; Soil moisture ; Farmland ; Seasonal cropping ; Monsoon climate ; Rain ; Vegetation ; Case studies / India / Gujarat
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047012)
(2.38 MB)
Groundwater for agricultural purposes is of utmost importance in the Indian state of Gujarat. To augment existing agricultural water resources, the Gujarat Government invested in many large-scale and smallscale water infrastructures (WI). In order to increase water storage and groundwater recharge and to justify further investments in WI, a better understanding on the impacts of past WIs is needed. This study uses data from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), along with soil moisture data from the Global Land Data Assimilation Systems, to estimate water storage before and after the intensification in the investment in WIs. In addition, Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) sensor was used to show changes in seasonal cropped areas during the same period. The analysis of data showed that the water storage in the state was estimated to be 24 BCM in 2003–2004 and 30 BCM in 2010–2011, an increase of 29% pre and post WI intensification. The Pixel Crop Duration Index (PCDI) indicated an increase in cropped area (at district level) in 2010–2011 when compared with 2003–2004 period, by 30% on yearly basis and about 80% during non-monsoon period. Results also indicates a significant net increase in water storage (by 5890 M m3 after water used for crop intensification) and increase in agricultural crop area (by 63,862 km2) in Gujarat during the period of intensification in infrastructures for water storage and groundwater recharge. Results also indicate that some districts have higher net water storage (compared to 2003), however the cropped area duration - PCDI has not increased much (e.g., Valsad and Navsari). The findings of this study can increase the understanding of the potential of WIs and provide valuable guidance for increasing cropped area in high water storage regions of Gujarat.
9 Esfandiari-Baiat, M.; Barzegar, Z.; Yousefi, L.; Maheshwari, B.. 2014. Urbanisation and its effects on water, food security and energy needs in Iran: a case study of city of Shiraz. In Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.). The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. pp.101-112. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
Urbanization ; Population growth ; Food security ; Water resources ; Energy consumption ; Environmental effects ; Air pollution ; Towns ; Sustainability ; Land use ; Case studies / Iran / Shiraz
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047023)
Urbanisation is threatening the sustainability of water, food and energy security in Iran. The primary reason for urbanisation is the migration of people from rural areas to cities. The city of Shiraz is located in the Shiraz Plain (380 Km2 ) in southern Iran. Its population in 1956 was 170,659 and grew to 1,351,181 in 2006. The population of Shiraz grew about 8 fold during this period while that of Iran during the same period only grew about 4 fold, indicating that the rate of migration was very high and urbanisation around Shiraz happened very fast in the same period. In 1956, Shiraz had a beautiful landscape, its size was 894 ha and it was surrounded by 1,565 ha of beautiful gardens and 35,714 ha of good agricultural land, fertile arable land and rangeland. In 1989, Shiraz had 5,962 ha of gardens. In 2006, Shiraz’s size grew to 19,074 ha (21 fold growth) and this rapid urbanisation has replaced not only 2,987 ha of valuable gardens but also caused the disappearance of some 18,000 ha of agricultural land, fertile arable land, and rangeland. Changes in land use in the Shiraz Plain, because of rapid urbanisation, were very high and have seriously reduced agricultural and horticultural production and also created significant problems for the people in the city. Due to rapid urbanisation, the demand for water has increased 15 times in the city during the period of 1956–2006. The consumption of energy in the Iranian residential sector is high and it was 2.5 fold of the world’s average consumption. According to the power consumption records from the Shiraz electricity company between 1968 and 2006 consumption grew 70 fold. The preliminary analysis in this study through the case study of Shiraz suggests that we need an in-depth study to understand how urbanisation has impacted on the availability of water supplies, the security of food production around our cities and the energy needs at the national level and what policy and planning changes are required to achieve sustainable and liveable cities in the future.
10 Singh, R.; Maheshwari, B.; Malano, H. 2014. Securing water supply in western Sydney: an analysis of water use, demand and availability in the South Creek catchment. In Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.). The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. pp.121-136. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
Water security ; Water supply ; Water use ; Water demand ; Water availability ; Hydrological cycle ; Strategy planning ; Land use ; Urbanization ; Climate change ; Suburban agriculture ; Irrigation water ; Population growth ; Catchment areas / Australia / Western Sydney / South Creek Catchment
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047024)
Increasing urbanisation and climate change uncertainties are putting pressure on regional authorities to revisit water management strategies in Western Sydney (Australia). This chapter examines water use patterns, demand and supply options in the South Creek catchment—a typical peri-urban catchment in Western Sydney. If present water management practices are continued, the water demand in the catchment is estimated to be more than double, growing from 53 GL/yr under the ‘current’ scenario, to 107 GL/yr under the ‘future’ scenario representing the expected conditions around the year 2025. Most of this increase will be due to residential and non-residential water use, followed by increases in irrigation requirements for recreational space (parks and golf courses). The macro water use, demand and availability analysis suggests that nearly 50 % of the ‘current’ and 47 % of the ‘future’ potable water demand could be replaced with non-potable water. The potential availability of non-potable water resources is estimated to be more than double of the potential demand for non-potable water in the catchment. This provides an opportunity to meet the region’s domestic, industrial, agricultural and environmental water demands provided all water resources are integrated, used and reused in a harmonised fashion. The stormwater and wastewater is to be seen as a ‘resource’, rather than a ‘waste’ in this new paradigm of integrated water supply management.
11 Maheshwari, B.; Simmons, B. 2014. System harmonisation of land and water resources in peri-urban regions: lessons from western Sydney, Australia. In Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.). The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. pp.383-392. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
Land resources ; Water resources ; Planning ; Periurban areas ; Water security ; Drinking water ; Stakeholders ; Government agencies ; Catchment areas ; Landscape / Australia / Western Sydney
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047048)
In this study, Western Sydney region was used as the ‘laboratory’ for understanding issues and options to harmonise rapidly changing peri-urban landscapes and identifying options for regional water security and land use planning. The main focus of the study was to engage and work with a range of stakeholder and government agencies to identify issues that impact on the use of potable water, stormwater, effluent and groundwater. The study involved transdisciplinary research and system harmonisation approach to understand the role of water in primary production, identifying opportunities and constraints as influenced by water quantity and quality, analysing market options and mechanisms to improve water productivity and environmental outcomes, review water policies, institutional barriers and community aspirations and identifying changes needed to improve water security. In this chapter, we discuss how the system harmonisation approach was applied to a peri-urban catchment in the Western Sydney region and a number of lessons that emerged from this study and the relevance of this approach to engaging stakeholders and government agencies and carrying out transdisciplinary research in peri-urban landscapes.
12 Singh, V. P.; Maheshwari, B.. 2014. Securing water, food, energy and liveability of cities: an epilogue. In Maheshwari, B.; Purohit, R.; Malano, H.; Singh, V. P.; Amerasinghe, Priyanie. (Eds.). The security of water, food, energy and liveability of cities: challenges and opportunities for peri-urban futures. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. pp.475-485. (Water Science and Technology Library Volume 71)
Water security ; Food security ; Energy conservation ; Periurban areas ; Urbanization ; Urban agriculture ; Governance ; Ecosystems ; Climate change ; Wastewater treatment
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H047055)
This chapter provides the summary of the main points covered in the preceding chapters. The book has six parts, including integrated water cycle modelling, urbanization, water and energy covering aspects of urban agriculture, global warming and climate change, landscape and ecosystem, and governance. The topics covered in different sections of the book are wide ranging and therefore the book illustrates the level of complexity of peri-urban landscapes. The book emphasise the need for integrated planning of future development of peri-urban areas so that our cities sustainable, resilient and liveable.
13 Prathapar, Sanmugam; Dhar, S.; Rao, G. T.; Maheshwari, B.. 2015. Performance and impacts of managed aquifer recharge interventions for agricultural water security: A framework for evaluation. Agricultural Water Management, 159:165-175. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2015.06.009]
Aquifers ; Groundwater recharge ; Agriculture ; Water security ; Water levels ; Water availability ; Water table ; Watersheds ; Impact assessment ; Performance evaluation ; Villages ; Case studies / India / Andhra Pradesh / Gokulpura / Rajasthan / Tamil Nadu / Maharashtra / Gujarat / Adarsha Watershed / Goverdhanpura Watershed / Kodangipalayam Watershed / Chikalgaon Watershed / Rajasamadhiyala Watershed / Satlasana Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047099)
(0.83 MB)
To minimize and counter decline of groundwater levels and improve the availability of water for cropproduction, Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) interventions are widely adopted across India, often ini-tiated or supported by, local communities, state and central governments to improve the availability ofwater for irrigation. While the literature on MAR in India is vast, the science of their construction is lack-ing. Furthermore, there is an absence of a structured approach to evaluate the performance and impactof MAR interventions. Often, performance and impacts of MAR have been commented upon together,without distinguishing the two.In this article, we aim to propose that performance and impact are different from each other, andthat the evaluation of MAR interventions should take into account such differences between them. Aframework for performance and impact analysis, based on three levels, viz. primary, secondary and ter-tiary, is outlined. It is then applied to seven selected MAR interventions in India, Adarsha watershed –Andhra Pradesh, Gokulpura-Goverdhanpura watershed – Rajasthan, Kodangipalayam watershed – TamilNadu, Chikalgaon watershed – Maharashtra, Rajasamadhiyala watershed – Gujarat, Satlasana watershed– Gujarat and Sujalam Sufalam Yojana – Gujarat. Although, the evaluations of these case studies reportedwere not categorized into performance and impact, most of them have addressed both. However, noneof them could explicitly demonstrate that reported impacts were uniquely related to MAR interventions.If impacts are used as a surrogate for performance, it must be shown that impacts are uniquely linked toMAR interventions.
14 Chinnasamy, Pennan; Maheshwari, B.; Prathapar, Sanmugam. 2015. Understanding groundwater storage changes and recharge in Rajasthan, India through remote sensing. Water, 7(10):5547-5565. [doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/w7105547]
Groundwater extraction ; Water storage ; Water use ; Water resources ; Remote sensing ; Rainwater ; Water harvesting ; Rainfall patterns ; Agroclimatic zones ; Irrigated farming ; Agriculture ; Case studies / India / Rajasthan
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047232)
(0.00 MB) (1.96 MB)
Groundwater management practices need to take hydrogeology, the agro-climate and demand for groundwater into account. Since agroclimatic zones have already been demarcated by the Government of India, it would aid policy makers to understand the status of groundwater recharge and discharge in each agroclimatic zone. However, developing effective policies to manage groundwater at agroclimatic zone and state levels is constrained due to a paucity of temporal data and information. With the launch of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission in 2002, it is now possible to obtain frequent data at broad spatial scales and use it to examine past trends in rain induced recharge and groundwater use. In this study, the GRACE data were used to estimate changes to monthly total water storage (TWS) and groundwater storage in different agroclimatic zones of Rajasthan, India. Furthermore, the long-term annual and seasonal groundwater storage trends in the state were estimated using the GRACE data and the trends were compared with those in rainfall data. The methodology based on GRACE data was found to be useful in detecting large scale trends in groundwater storage changes covering different agroclimatic zones. The analysis of data shows that groundwater storage trends depend on rainfall in previous years and, therefore, on the antecedent moisture conditions. Overall, the study indicates that if suitable groundwater recharge methods and sites are identified for the state, there is potential to achieve more groundwater recharge than what is currently occurring and, thus, enhancing the availability of water for irrigated agriculture.
15 Jadeja, Y.; Maheshwari, B.; Packham, R.; Hakimuddin; Purohit, R.; Thaker, B.; Goradiya, V.; Oza, S.; Dave, S.; Soni, P.; Dashora, Y.; Dashora, R.; Shah, Tushaar; Gorsiya, J.; Katara, P.; Ward, J.; Kookana, R.; Dillon, P.; Prathapar, Sanmugam; Chinnasamy, Pennan; Varua, M. 2015. Participatory groundwater management at village level in India – empowering communities with science for effective decision making. Paper Presented at the Australian Groundwater Conference 2015, Canberra, Australia, 3-5 November 2015. 20p.
Participatory approaches ; Groundwater management ; Water resources ; Watersheds ; Rural communities ; Villages ; Empowerment ; Decision making ; Drinking water ; Capacity building ; Hydrogeology ; Training ; Land resources ; Stakeholders ; Mapping / India / Gujarat / Rajasthan
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047332)
(0.68 MB)
There are many reasons behind the worsening groundwater situation that have led to a scarcity of quality water supply for sustaining lives and livelihoods in India, as well as in other parts of the world. The lack of a proper scientific understanding of this situation by the various stakeholders has been identified as one of the important gaps in the sustainable management of groundwater. This paper shares experiences from Gujarat and Rajasthan in western India where scientists, NGOs, government agencies and village leaders have worked together to explore strategies for sustainable groundwater management. The study involved a total of eleven villages in Gujarat and Rajasthan, India. The study’s main aim was to educate these communities through an intensive capacity building of (mainly) rural youth, called Bhujal Jaankars (BJs), a Hindi word meaning ‘groundwater informed’. The BJs were trained in their local settings through relevant theory and practical exercises, so that they could perform a geo-hydrological evaluation of their area, monitor groundwater and share their findings and experiences with their village community. The BJs went through a training program of a series of sessions totalling 45-days that covered mapping, land and water resource analysis, geo-hydrology, and water balance analysis, and finally groundwater management strategies. This approach has highlighted important learning that can be replicated in other parts of the two states and beyond. There are now 35 trained BJs who regularly monitor groundwater and rainfall in the two study watersheds, and provide data to both scientific and their own rural communities. This study has demonstrated that BJ capacity building has helped to provide a scientific basis for village level groundwater dialogue. This is now leading the communities and other stakeholders to improve their decision making regarding groundwater use, crop selection, agronomy, recharge strategies and other aspects of sustainable groundwater management. Although the BJ program has been successful and BJs can act as a valuable interface between local communities and other stakeholders, there still exists some challenges to the BJ programme, such as the need for mechanisms and funding sources that will sustain the BJs over the longer term; wider acceptance of BJs among scientific communities and policy makers; and the acceptance of the role and involvements of BJs in natural resources management programs of the State and Central governments in India.
16 Varua, M. E.; Ward, J.; Maheshwari, B.; Ozac, S.; Purohit, R.; Hakimuddin; Chinnasamy, Pennan. 2016. Assisting community management of groundwater: irrigator attitudes in two watersheds in Rajasthan and Gujarat, India. Journal of Hydrology, 537:171-186. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.02.003]
Community management ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater recharge ; Water use ; Watershed management ; Water availability ; Water use ; Living standards ; Aquifers ; Irrigation ; Sustainability ; Institutions ; Farming systems ; Farmers ; Households ; Income ; Poverty ; Agriculture ; Land ownership / India / Rajasthan / Gujarat / Meghraj Watershed / Dharta Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047490)
(1.82 MB)
The absence of either state regulations or markets to coordinate the operation of individual wells has focussed attention on community level institutions as the primary loci for sustainable groundwater management in Rajasthan and Gujarat, India. The reported research relied on theoretical propositions that livelihood strategies, groundwater management and the propensity to cooperate are associated with the attitudinal orientations of well owners in the Meghraj and Dharta watersheds, located in Gujarat and Rajasthan respectively. The research tested the hypothesis that attitudes to groundwater management and farming practices, household income and trust levels of assisting agencies were not consistent across the watersheds, implying that a targeted approach, in contrast to default uniform programs, would assist communities craft rules to manage groundwater across multiple hydro-geological settings. Hierarchical cluster analysis of attitudes held by survey respondents revealed four statistically significant discrete clusters, supporting acceptance of the hypothesis. Further analyses revealed significant differences in farming practices, household wealth and willingness to adapt across the four groundwater management clusters. In conclusion, the need to account for attitudinal diversity is highlighted and a framework to guide the specific design of processes to assist communities craft coordinating instruments to sustainably manage local aquifers described.
17 Ward, J.; Varua, M. E.; Maheshwari, B.; Oza, S.; Purohit, R.; Hakimuddin; Dave, S. 2016. Exploring the relationship between subjective wellbeing and groundwater attitudes and practices of farmers in rural India. Journal of Hydrology, 540:1-16. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2016.05.037]
Groundwater management ; Farmers attitudes ; Living standards ; Social welfare ; Watersheds ; Irrigation practices ; Aquifers ; Recharge ; Community organizations ; Rural areas ; Villages ; Households ; Human behaviour ; Participatory approaches ; Statistical methods / India / Gujarat / Rajasthan / Meghraj Watershed / Dharta Watershed
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H047716)
(1.85 MB)
Failure to effectively coordinate opportunistic extractions by individual well owners with groundwater recharge has led to increasing Indian groundwater scarcity, affecting future opportunities for improved rural livelihoods and household wellbeing. Investigation of the relationship between groundwater institutions, management attitudes and subjective wellbeing of Indian rural households has substantial potential to reveal initiatives that jointly improve aquifer sustainability and household wellbeing, yet has received limited attention. Subjective wellbeing was calculated as an index of dissatisfaction (IDS), revealing ranked importance and the level of dissatisfaction of individual factors selected from economic, environmental and social/relational wellbeing dimensions. High economic and environmental IDS scores were calculated for respondents in the Meghraj and Dharta watersheds, India, respectively. We tested an exploratory hypothesis that observed IDS differences were correlated with differences in life circumstances, (household attributes, income and assets) and psychological disposition (life guiding values and willingness to adapt). The distribution of ranked IDS wellbeing scores was estimated across four statistically distinct clusters reflecting attitudes towards sustainable groundwater management and practice. Decision tree analysis identified significantly different correlates of overall wellbeing specific to cluster membership and the watershed, supporting the research hypothesis. High income IDS scores were weakly correlated with actual total household income (r < 0.25) consistent with international studies. The results suggest a singular reliance on initiatives to improve household income is unlikely to manifest as improved individual subjective wellbeing for the Dharta and Meghraj watersheds. In conclusion, correlates were tabulated into a systematic decision framework to assist the design of participatory processes at the village level, by targeting specific factors likely to jointly improve aquifer sustainability and household wellbeing.
18 Chinnasamy, Pennan; Maheshwari, B.; Dillon, P.; Purohit, R.; Dashora, Y.; Soni, P.; Dashora, R. 2018. Estimation of specific yield using water table fluctuations and cropped area in a hardrock aquifer system of Rajasthan, India. Agricultural Water Management, 202:146-155. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2018.02.016]
Water table ; Water balance ; Water use ; Water storage ; Water levels ; Irrigation water ; Groundwater management ; Groundwater extraction ; Aquifers ; Crop production ; Farmland ; Land use ; Semiarid zones ; Monitoring ; Wells / India / Rajasthan / Dharta
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048615)
Assessment of specific yields is important for effective groundwater management in semi-arid hardrock aquifers, especially in India with its unsustainable groundwater usage rates. The Dharta watershed in the Udaipur district of Rajasthan is one such hardrock area in India where the groundwater extraction rate is a concern. In this study, we use groundwater balance analysis to estimate the specific yield (Sy) based on crop irrigation water use and changes in water table depths, during the irrigation season, to develop an understanding of the volume of groundwater recharge from pre and post monsoon water table depths and an understanding of the spatial and temporal changes in estimates of specific yield in the study area. The analysis used here estimates values at village scale (average area 3.65 km2) and is a technique compatible with the farmers monitoring of groundwater levels to facilitate local cooperative groundwater management. Five villages in the Dharta watershed in Rajasthan were selected and 50 wells per village were monitored for water table depth, at weekly intervals, over a two-year period. This resulted in a total of 250 wells in the study area and the monitoring was carried out by local farmer volunteers - called Bhujal Jankaars (BJs), a Hindi word meaning ‘groundwater informed.’ Crop area coverage (with a total of 40 crops) was examined for two years in the study area. Estimates of Sy in the five villages were between 1.4 and 8%, resulting in values comparable with previous studies. The watershed area-weighted average Sy was 3.8%. The method used in this study enabled estimates of recharge without needing a calibrated groundwater model in an area with sparse information on aquifer hydraulic characteristics and unreliable digital elevation maps.
19 Chinnasamy, Pennan; Maheshwari, B.; Prathapar, Sanmugam. 2018. Adaptation of standardised precipitation index for understanding watertable fluctuations and groundwater resilience in hard-rock areas of India. Environmental Earth Sciences, 77(15):1-16. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-018-7734-6]
Groundwater management ; Groundwater recharge ; Climate change ; Drought ; Rain ; Precipitation ; Water table ; Water use ; Water supply ; Aquifers ; Rural communities / India / Rajasthan / Gujarat / Udaipur District / Aravalli District
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048871)
Groundwater use in India, and many developing countries, is linked to livelihood and well-being of village communities. It is, therefore, important to characterise groundwater behaviour and resilience and identify strategies that will help to improve the sustainability of groundwater supplies. The concept of Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI) has been widely used for analysing rainfall drought. In this study, we adapt SPI to understand watertable fluctuations and assess resilience of groundwater supplies vis-à-vis rainfall variability from one year to the next. The modified SPI, called Groundwater Resilience Index (GRI), represents a normalized continuous watertable elevation variability function. The index is applied to two districts, viz., Udaipur and Aravalli in Rajasthan and Gujarat, India, respectively, to assess its usefulness. To evaluate the association of rainfall variability with groundwater depth fluctuation, SPI was also calculated. The study showed that GRI varies less than SPI, indicating that groundwater availability is less variable than the rainfall in both districts. This means that groundwater increases reliability of water supply for irrigation in both districts. The estimated SPI and GRI at 6-month intervals for the study period show that even though the groundwater is not stressed (normal condition in 75% of the months observed), there is variation in resilience of the aquifer system to drought and extreme events. Overall, the study indicated that the proposed GRI can be a useful tool for understanding watertable fluctuations and assessing groundwater resilience, especially to prioritise areas for groundwater recharge when funds for recharge works are limited.
20 Jadeja, J.; Maheshwari, B.; Packham, R.; Bohra, H.; Purohit, R.; Thaker, B.; Dillon, P.; Oza, S.; Dave, S.; Soni, P.; Dashora, Y.; Dashora, R.; Shah, Tushaar [IWMI]; Gorsiya, J.; Katara, P.; Ward, J.; Kookana, R.; Singh, P. K.; Chinnasamy, Pennan; Goradiya, V.; Prathapar, Sanmugam; Varua, M.; Chew, M. 2018. Managing aquifer recharge and sustaining groundwater use: developing a capacity building program for creating local groundwater champions. Sustainable Water Resources Management, 4(2):317-329. [doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-018-0228-6]
Groundwater management ; Groundwater extraction ; Groundwater recharge ; Groundwater development ; Water use ; Water quality ; Water availability ; Water resources ; Water management ; Water levels ; Aquifers ; Monitoring ; Capacity building ; Sustainability ; Training ; Villages ; Rural communities ; Stakeholders ; Farmers ; Participatory approaches ; Cooperatives / India
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H048906)
Participatory groundwater management is increasingly being recognised for its ability to address the challenges of equity, efficiency and sustainability. It can particularly help with effective engagement at the grassroots level for monitoring, recharging and managing the groundwater as a common pool resource. The main aim of this article is to discuss the training and management process used and the lessons learnt from a participatory groundwater management project, titled Managing Aquifer Recharge and Sustainable Groundwater Use through Village-level Intervention (MARVI). In this project, researchers, rural development facilitators and local villagers worked together to initiate participatory groundwater monitoring in 11 villages from the Dharta and Meghraj watersheds in Rajasthan and Gujarat, India. The study involved educating villagers through an intensive program of capacity building, wherein the villagers who participated in the program were called Bhujal Jaankars (BJs), a Hindi word meaning ‘groundwater informed’. The BJs were trained in their local settings through relevant theory and practical exercises, so that they could perform a geo-hydrological evaluation of their area, monitor groundwater and share their findings and experiences with their village community. The study has highlighted that with a well-designed program of capacity building and on-going support through training and nurturing, BJs can play an important role in monitoring watertable depth and other data for estimating groundwater recharge, leading to a sharing of the groundwater information with the local village community to influence the sustainable use of groundwater. Overall they can act as local champions for groundwater futures. Further, this study has demonstrated that BJ capacity building can help to provide a scientific basis for village level groundwater dialogue and assist village communities and other stakeholders to improve their decision making regarding groundwater use, crop selection, agronomy, recharge strategies and other aspects of sustainable groundwater management. Although the BJ program has been successful and BJs can act as a valuable interface between local communities and other stakeholders managed aquifer recharge activities, there still exists some challenges to the BJ programme, such as the need for mechanisms and funding sources that will sustain the BJs over the longer term; wider acceptance of BJs among scientific communities and policy makers; and the acceptance of the role and involvements of BJs in natural resources management programs of the State and Central governments in India.
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