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| Traditional Irrigation System in Garhwal: A Preliminary Investigation |
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Reference |
| Kumar, Rajesh; Sen, Debashish; Chopra, Ravi: GUHLS-A Traditional Irrigation System in Garhwal: A Preliminary Investigation |
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Introduction to the Institution |
| In the Garhwal hills, the area under irrigation is quite limited. The two irrigated village which were selected for study from each watershed are: 1. Chandrabhaga watershed: Daunra Mai Kanda and Talaai
2. Shorgad watershed: Bhatwari and Bachhni
Shorgad watershed : Bhatwari and Bachhni are located at higher altitudes than Daunra Mai Kanda and Talaai. Here paddy and wheat are the main irrigated crops in the kharif and rabi seasons. A small amount of potatoes and onions are also grown on irrigated lands during rabi season, for subsistence purpose. The productivity of paddy and wheat on the irrigated lands is higher than in Daunra and Talaai due to more frequent irrigation and fewer number of trees on the agriculture lands in this area. There is no major market in this region, comparatively it is isolated than the Chandrabhaga watershed. The urban centres in Chamoli are not easily accesible from the Shorgad watershed
BHATWARI was settled only in the early 1950s. all its 14 families are Thakurs, it has two perennial streams, almost 80 percent of Bhatwari's cultivated land area (6 ha ) is irrigated. All the families own land in neighbouring villages also, because of the good irrigation facilities in Bhatwari, people from surrounding villages also own small plots of land here. On an average, most people own about 20 to 25 nalis (0.4-0.5 ha) of which 10-12 nalis are cultivated in their own village. People use mainly farmyard manure and urea as fertilizers. Bhatwari has 11 Guhls, which are unlined, length varying from 100 to 150m, except for one which is about 200m long and irrigates the fields of all the 14 families in the village. These 14 families own just under 1.5 ha of irrigated land in Bhatwari, an average of 4 to 5 nalis/family
BACHHNI has five Harijan families and the remaining seventeen are Thakurs. The social division is sharp. But where Thakurs and Harijans share a Guhl, its maintenance is a common effort. Bachhni has no perennial stream. The farmers here draw water through Guhls from the Shorgad stream. The irrigated area (2 ha) is only 20 percent of Bachhni's cultivated area. Irrigation water benefits 13 of its 22 families. People use mainly farmyard manure or urea as fertilizer in their fields. |
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Coverage of the Institution |
| Found in other villages of Chamoli |
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Rules for Management
of the Institution |
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(a) Boundary Rules |
| SPATIAL:
SOCIAL : Not reported |
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(b) Governance
rules |
| Not reported
MAINTENANCE: Cleaning of the Guhls is undertaken before paddy transplanting (before mid-June) and after the paddy harvest (early Nov). The cleaning is done by the Guhls users. When a field is being irrigated, its owner and his/her family keep a watch on the Guhl, removing any obstructions and plugging cracks or leaks |
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(c) Resource Allocation |
| Since the number of users per Guhl is very small, the distribution system is quite different from the Chandrabhaga guhls (refer the previous record). The person who tills his\her fields first has the right to use the water first, irrespective of the position of the fields. The irrigation sequence is therefore determined by the sequence of the start of tilling. The normal interval between subsequent irrigations is 3 to 4 days. Wheat does not require as frequent irigation as paddy |
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Conflict Resolution Mechanism |
| Water disputes are unknown since, there is no scarcity of water |
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Purpose |
| Management of water resource |
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Country |
| India (Uttaranchal) |
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Region |
| Chamoli |
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Date Of Publication |
| RS-5/03/97 |
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