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| INDIGENOUS IRRIGATION IN SOUTH BIHAR, INDIA: A CASE OF CONGRUENCE OF BOUNDARIES. |
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Reference |
| Pant, Niranjan. 1998. "Indigenous Irrigation in South Bihar, India: A Case of Congruence of Boundaries." Presented at "Crossing Boundaries", the seventh annual conference of the International Association for the Study of Common Property, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, June 10-14. Link for ref: http://dlc.dlib.indiana.edu/archive/00000127/ |
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Introduction to the Institution |
| Ahar-pyne system of indigenous irrigation is historically the most important source of irrigation in South Bihar and even today provides a shining example of participatory irrigation management. The factors which are responsible for the wide prevalence of this mode of irrigation in this region are that the region is characterized by (I) scanty rainfall, (II) a rapid slope off which the water quickly runs, and (III) a soil which is either a stiff clay or a loose sand equally unretentive of moisture. The rivers in this area are rainfed, following the incidence of rainfall in their catchment basins, the rivers swell up into rushing torrents and discharge the rain water very quickly within hours through their sloping beds. As a result, the water is either rapidly carried through the area (in case the soil is stiff clay) or it percolates down through the land (in case the soil is sandy). In order to prevent the water being wasted, long narrow artificial canals called pynes are led off from the rivers by means of which the river water is transmitted to the fields. Further, the same rapid slope would facilitate the wastage of the water if it were not impounded - in extensive reservoirs called ahars, which are formed by constructing a series of retaining embankments across the line of drainage. Ahars are reservoirs and consist of a major embankment across the line of the drainage with two side embankments running backwards up to the line of the drainage gradually losing their heights because of the gradient of the surface. Water for irrigation is drawn out by opening outlets made at different heights in the embankment |
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Rules for Management
of the Institution |
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(a) Boundary Rules |
| Spacial Boundaries: The case study is about the Machala ahar which is located in Kalpa Village of block and district Jehanabad of Bihar State. Kalpa is a panchayat (lowest tier of rural local self government) village. It consists of the main village Badi Kalpa, the smaller village Chhoti Kalpa and 17 other hamlets. Machala ahar is one of the biggest and the oldest ahars not only in Jehanabad but also in whole of South Bihar. The catchment reservoir of the ahar is spread in an area of 552 ha. It used to and still does irrigate about 1200 to 1300 ha of land of about 35 to 40 villages. In case of village Kalpa, it irrigates about 300 ha of land of which about 160 ha belongs to the main village - Badi Kalpa which is closest to the ahar.Social Boundaries: All farmers, rich or poor and big or small, have plots in head and tail positions of the irrigation channel and can use it. As a result, adequacy or shortage of irrigation water is equitably shared by all cultivators of the irrigation command. Posts that handle the functioning of water distribution are associated with particular casts. |
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(b) Governance
rules |
| Ahar-pynes work, particularly the one relating to maintenance and overseeing of water distribution is looked after by three functionaries. These are headman, Barahill (supervisor) and Gudait (watchman). A unique feature of ahar-pyne management system in Jehanabad circle is that some posts are associated with particulars castes. For instance only Dusadh scheduled caste persons are hired for the job of the watchman. Similarly, the drum-beaters are from the Muslim caste of Dafalis. Dusadhs are selected for the job of watchmen because they are physically sturdy and their muscle power comes handy in matters of inter-village and intra-village disputes. Similarly call for goam (Collective physical action) are made by beating of drums and the drum beatings are done by dafalis.Maintenance: In case of major repairs, in the past, it was done by Tikari estate because the tenant farmers did not have the capital required for major repair, now it is done by the Minor IrrigationDepartment.Farmers had to pay for the repairs as well as for the irrigation, while today they do not pay for any of these two things. Ordinary maintenance such as the periodic clearance of silt, the repair of small branches of the ahars and field channels is done by the cultivators hemselves under goam system and it starts before the onset of monsoon. In the past, under this ystem, "at the order of the landlord or his local agent or servant, the cultivators have to supply one man per plough to turn out on these occasion and carry out the work; the peasants come out in a body and this is called goam. The call for goam is made by beating of drums. The drum-beater goes from place to place announcing the nature of and location of the emergency. Goam occurs even today every year in hundreds of villages of South Bihar. |
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(c) Resource Allocation |
| The parabandi System is used to distribute water among the villages from a common source Each village has its fixed turns of so many days and hours to avail the water. These turns are assigned by mutual agreements or ancient customs. In case of principal pynes, including the ones irrigating Kalpa village, Tikari estate used to maintain a detailed register called lal bahi (red register). The register specified the irrigation rights of each village. Usually parabandi arrangements began in the month of Aswin (mid-September), when the demand was acute and supply limited. At other times, all branches of pynes were left open |
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Conflict Resolution Mechanism |
| Allocation of water, which is managed by the cultivators, is a major source of conflict. One village often tries to get more water than it should, or else when rainfall is scarce, lower reach villages seek to get water before their proper turn, and the disputes sometimes terminate in blows, and occasionally in bloodshed. A committee of five members has been constituted by the villagers to resolve disputes arising out of distribution of water and upkeep of water conveyance structures. |
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Problems Faced by Institution |
| Not mentioned |
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Changes in the Institution over time |
| Not mentioned |
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Purpose |
| Manitenance and regulation of water irrigation system |
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Country |
| India |
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Region |
| Kalpa Village of block and district Jehanabad of Bihar State |
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