CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

Transcription

1 Literature Review 27 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW Literature Review for the thesis has been carried out on two major aspects: (i) watercentric adaptation strategies mainly from livelihood point of view; (ii) a review of the Saurashtra Recharging Movement from a conceptual framework of social movements and examining the leadership styles, framing techniques in social mobilisation and communication processes inter alia; and (iii) a review of concepts related to groundwater recharge estimation methods. While the first named two aspects are dealt with in this chapter, review of groundwater recharge estimation methods, socio technical approach and its (proposed) application to groundwater along with rationale are dealt with in Chapter 4 along with a description of groundwater recharge estimation methods. This Chapter is divided into three sections. Section 1 gives conceptual foundation for the adaptation strategies, mainly from agrarian livelihoods point of view. The predominant livelihoods in the study villages comprise agriculture and livestock, which have (ground-) water as a critical element, around which the adaptation concepts revolve. Section 2 describes the socio technical approach and the rationale for its application to groundwater irrigation. While Uphoff (1991) has applied it to physical irrigation systems, limited to channel, sprinkler or drip, Mollinga (1998) and Narain (2003) applied it to canal irrigation systems. This thesis extends the socio technical framework to groundwaterbased irrigation systems. Section 3 describes evolution of groundwater as a driver of development by examining the response by the government and the civil society actors to water scarcity in Gujarat. Section 4 establishes a conceptual framework for social movements necessary for the analysis of the Saurashtra Groundwater Recharging Movement; this includes factors influencing social mobilization, and examining the type

2 Literature Review 28 and role of leadership, the framing techniques and the key drivers that shaped a seemingly innocuous, disaggregated recharge activity into a movement. SECTION 1 ADAPTATION THEORY-CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS Adaptation often is a Hobson s choice, more so in the context of livelihoods, as it involves uncertainties, and factors, over which one does not have control. People faced with livelihood challenges are compelled to take certain actions which they hope would improve their livelihood options. These actions are both immediate and long term, and often are hard choices. Adaptation may therefore be seen as factors that enable households to take courses of actions particularly during disaster situations (such as droughts, floods, earthquakes and volcanoes); importantly, these actions are located in the extant political, social, economic and systems theory (Moench et al. 2005). Further, the actions also comment on the relevance and effectiveness of the government programmes and policies that are expected to aid communities tide over and build capacities to tackle the adverse livelihood situations. In the case of the predominant livelihoods such as agriculture and animal husbandry, the main concern of a majority of the agrarian households is to ensure availability of irrigation water. In the arid and semi arid areas, groundwater is the most dependable source. Securing water secures crop yields which comprise the major means of income to the households. The other aspects that influence income comprise the market, choice of migration and other systems that enable flows to occur (Moench et al. 2005, Rathore, M.S., 1998). But more importantly, social capital and institutional arrangements are critical to ensure not only use and management of resources but also sustain and improvise adaptive actions. The term social capital here is inclusive of the ability of the households to cooperate on mutual and communal basis, to share knowledge, skills and experiences for individual and common benefit.

3 Literature Review 29 There is increasing recognition of the linkages between the ecological and social systems as seen in the past two and a half decades or so. In particular, in Asia, as part of adaptive strategies, communities have been managing natural resources such as forests, water bodies, village wastelands, mangroves, and other commons over centuries. This community management of natural resources has been subjected to fluctuations in performance and efficiency due to a variety of internal and external factors. Internal factors relate to the composition of humans in terms of caste, class and creed and power relations; external factors comprise the governance, policies and hierarchies in implementation. There are many obstacles or challenges to the adaptive livelihood strategies by the communities which are in some sense externalities : [a] In many regions, hydrological systems have been fundamentally transformed by regional overdraft of groundwater or by the construction of surface structures (such as roads, railway lines and embankments) that fundamentally altered water availability and drainage patterns. This transformation along with the inherently unpredictable weather patterns, compounded by the increasing climatic change scenarios, limits the ability of society to regulate regional hydrologic systems (Moench et al. 2005). [b] Major sources of water supply systems such as rivers drying up result in groundwater level declines which in turn causes snapping up of environmental flows. The consequential impact on water security is both immediate and long term more so in arid and semi arid regions. Areas with shallow overburden and saline zones underlying productive aquifers limit both recharge and storage and thereby the yield. Such aquifers are common in arid and semi arid regions (Roy et al. 2002). [c] Adaptive strategies that address long term water management problems are those that respond to variability, and work with change processes to reach socially desired goals; however, these approaches do not provide much practical direction due to need for greater specification (Moench and Dixit, 2004). Adaptive strategies generally represent the cumulative experience of the people that includes their own innovations and experimentation. A critical aspect is whether these strategies are able to draw upon the

4 Literature Review 30 scientific advancement that often tended to remain in a parallel, protected domain. Adaptive strategies that possess characteristics of historical connectivity, traditional knowledge and advances of modern science, coupled with robust civil society and governance institutions would be ideally situated to address long term resource management problems. Forest management in India is a classic example where communities in certain States such as Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and the Northeastern states have had been managing the local forests over many decades (Mudrakartha & Kumar, 2001; Kumar and Mudrakartha, 2001); the experiential learning has been passed on to generations. State intervention since nineties in the form of a policy resolution for management of forests has triggered more criticism than benefits (Mudrakartha et al. 2001) [d] In complex societies, social movements contributed effectively to prevention of ecological degradation. They can successfully challenge the dominant political systems as needed to not only accommodate marginal voices but also carry out ecological functions in the interest of the community. However, Shah (1998) contends that many of the diverse initiatives or responses by people tend to be peripheral and ineffective as they depend upon a host of factors such as the leadership, vision and a whole set of alternative approaches and technologies. Further, the success is also determined by the clarity of purpose, organisation, scale, technical and social strengths. In matters of common resources such as forests and water in particular, participation of the people evidenced in the form of social capital at the command of the leadership is critical. Other factors such as the degree of social cohesion in the community and enabling externalities (such as policy environment) play a great role for the various sub groups or collectives to reflect, identify options and act (Mudrakartha et al. 2005; Rathore, 2003c); COMMAN, 2005). [e] Innovation is another important element that sustains collective action. When innovation is encouraged, it tends to build in flexibility in resource management by providing space for further innovations at various hierarchies. Accumulation of such experiences on resource management combined with people s wisdom helps protect systems against collapse; the physical and the human systems thus would possess

5 Literature Review 31 resilience for an effective adaptive management. In contrast, guidelines prescribed for large-scale implementation of programmes under government funding tend to stifle innovation. [f] Not just innovation, but strategic implementation of the innovative approaches is equally important. This can happen only when critical soft elements are integrated into a programme along with scaling up arrangements 10. The critical soft elements include clear messages through policy implementation guidelines on people s ownership of the programme, transparency, co-partnership between government and non-governmental actors, and display of genuine concerns bereft of political overtones. SECTION 2 SOCIO TECHNICAL FRAMEWORK APPLIED TO GROUNDWATER IRRIGATION Groundwater problems are socially constructed, and so should be the solutions. However, groundwater is not just a technical resource but also a social resource. Therefore, an approach that combines both social and technical approaches is most appropriate. Mollinga (1998) has described the conceptual framework of a socio technical phenomenon while tracing its emergence to Uphoff (1986) and Huppert (1989). He states that a comprehensive understanding that integrates technical and social science 10 An example here is in order. When the Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Programme was launched during the year 2000, the agrarian households of Saurashtra contributed more than the mandated 40% and built three check dams within the budget sanctioned for two check dams. This was possible due to the maximum labour contribution that formed 40% of the check dam cost. The local leaders by then had already built up social capital over several years as part of the well recharging activity and hence could achieve very high contribution with quality. However, when this scheme was sought to be scaled up shortly thereafter in the name of Sardar Patel Jal Sanchay Yojana (popularly known as the 60:40 or 80:20 scheme), the Gujarat government only provided for physical scale up. The implementation guidelines did not integrate the soft elements, and hence people saw it as government scheme. Therefore, even when much needed, state sponsored schemes are found to collapse no sooner than the project duration is over, or when the grant or subsidy comes to a halt. Sometimes, there would be lukewarm response, as in the case of SPPWCP.

6 Literature Review 32 perspectives underlies the basic assumption that irrigation is inherently a socio-technical phenomenon. He further argues that social shaping or social construction approach to irrigation technology investigates the social dimensions of irrigation artefacts 11. The social dimension comprises three aspects, namely, social requirements for use, social construction and social effects or benefits. Put differently, social requirements are defined as enabling conditions essential for irrigation technologies to operate. The above framework has been evolved and applied to the irrigation technology involving surface water. While Uphoff (1991) has applied it to physical irrigation systems, limited to channel, sprinkler or drip, Mollinga (1998) and Narain (2003) applied it to canal irrigation systems. This thesis would like to extend the framework to groundwater-based irrigation systems. Mollinga argues that irrigation technologies are socially constructed implying that the designs and technical characteristics (such as use of type of material) not only evolve but are shaped through social processes such as communication, negotiation, struggles and decision-making. In the ground-water based irrigation systems, it is proposed that the starting point is the groundwater, not the irrigation technology or the irrigation artefact. Availability of groundwater triggers the imagination of the user for potential benefits. Once the user is convinced about the availability of the resource, the irrigation technology comes into play. The user now transforms into an active stakeholder from a passive stakeholder. In canal irrigation systems, when bereft of external technical inputs (government schemes or externally funded projects or through NGOs) the shaping of the irrigation technology is driven by ideas that emerge and improvise from within the community, based on their experience, traditional wisdom and knowledge. A similar response happens in the context of groundwater where the irrigation technology comprises the type of well structure, the water extraction mechanism and the conveyance system; the official technical agencies 11 Mollinga reserves the term artefacts to mean technology for the hardware component of irrigation (Mollinga, 1998:13).

7 Literature Review 33 predominantly provide the external technical inputs and or funding sometimes. Historically, such inputs have been provided mostly for surface water supply projects and very little for groundwater. It may be recalled that groundwater development in India has been mainly due to private capital formation except for certain schemes that aimed at promoting groundwater extraction through bore wells such as during the Green Revolution period (Shah, 2009). What makes households participate in the process of social construction of irrigation technology? Is there a difference in participation response to surface water and groundwater centric activities? Fundamentally, what drives communities to participate is the social effects, that is, the benefits, that accrue to the households. In surface irrigation systems, the process of benefits accrual is perceivable, given the ability of the farmers to connect their irrigation demand with the water stored in the canals and reservoirs. In the case of groundwater, uncertainties exist even as regards its availability in the first place, and in quantities needed, assuming the quality is suitable. Therefore, to what extent a household could readily participate in a groundwater based irrigation system depends not so much on the household s ability to visualise-which is fraught with risk-than upon how quickly the benefits are accrued in tangible terms. The tangible results here include irrigation security for crops, crop yield increase, income rise, or fodder security. In short, the key difference between surface water based irrigation technology and groundwater based technology is that the resource (that is, water) in the former case is visible, and is available, for design of a technology or artefact for use or supply. In the case of the latter, the resource is not visible, and therefore, difficult to envision in terms of availability and quantum. While this is so for the farmer, it is difficult for planners too as basic scientific information on aquifer condition is often extremely limited (World Bank and Ministry of Water Resources, Government of India, 1998). The macro figures such as the overall level or stage of groundwater development 12 in India as 58%, although indicative of a comfortable situation at the aggregate level, mask the high degree of variability in availability and development of groundwater (at village and at farm level) throughout the 12 The level or stage of groundwater development is assessed with respect to recharge on a year to year basis, expressed in percentage.

8 Literature Review 34 country (Planning Commission, 2007). Data and information based on macro assessments has serious limitations for use at the village level as it uses several assumptions and often provides unrealistic information. Further, in the case of assessing groundwater status in India, the geographic unit of reference adopted is taluka, which is agglomeration of a village and hamlets-the smallest inhabited area. Since the taluka may contain anywhere from a few tens of villages to more than a hundred, differing widely in geographic, climatic and social aspects, the assessment figures such as the stage of groundwater development are often misleading. It should be emphasised that one of the most critical uncertainties relates to aquifer delimitation in addition to data inadequacy especially of water and climatic parameters. Another dimension relates to the availability of groundwater. Groundwater may not be available at all places in a given village due to high variations in its occurrence, and quantum; this is especially true in the current scenario where groundwater overexploitation is rampant, unlike in earlier decades when groundwater was seen as a dependable source as it occurs where you want. This situation is unlike the canal irrigation systems, wherein water flows from one place to another, allowing farmers to tap parts of the flow along the way. However, with groundwater availability in question, and groundwater storage a limitation due to small aquifer thickness and low permeability, in particular, in hard rock areas, the groundwater based irrigation technology has to regress one step in terms of resource augmentation, rather than just design for use as the starting point as in the case of surface water. In the past two decades or so, neither groundwater has been capable of meeting all the irrigation requirements in a given area, nor is the surface water; therefore, both surface water and groundwater should be used conjunctively. In water harvesting activities, the surface flows are regulated through checks across rivers, and through similar structures (farm bunds, farm ponds) on the landed area, as in a watershed programme. In such cases, the socio technical approaches are guided by the availability of both surface and groundwater, and their conjunctive use. In the absence of technical information about the groundwater resource, the community assesses the resource availability and adequacy

9 Literature Review 35 based on their traditional wisdom. Ultimately, the type and design of irrigation technology in such situations has to cater to both surface water and groundwater characteristics. SECTION 3 EVOLUTION OF GROUNDWATER AS A DRIVER OF DEVELOPMENT For many decades, groundwater has been playing a major role in agrarian livelihoods in India. Even during 1930, well irrigation accounted for over 78% of the total irrigation area as against 10% irrigated through canals (Prakash, 2005). More than half of the irrigation requirements of agriculture are sourced from groundwater, which, in monetary terms, contributed to 9% of India s GDP (the World Bank and Ministry of Water Resources, GoI, 1998). Thus, groundwater contributes substantially to the agriculture sector s major share of 28% of the total GDP. Agriculture as a sector is the largest employer accounting for 60% of the employment and supporting 70% of the India s rural population (Shah, 2009). However, during the 1960s, large numbers of people in India were suffering from hunger and poverty, primarily due to unavailability of food grains. The shortfall in food grains was due to uncertainty in climatic conditions including rainfall, primitive agriculture practices, low efficiency technologies and high demands from the burgeoning population. Green Revolution was introduced during mid-sixties to enhance our food grain production. The focus was on areas endowed with water, where highly subsidised agricultural inputs were pumped in. For the following two decades, the food grain production went up and India got transformed from a food deficit state into a food surplus one. The 60% of the households from the arid and semi arid regions, not covered under the Green Revolution, continued to have problems with agriculture; low yields due to inadequate irrigation and farmer inability to invest in agricultural inputs were the critical ones. Nevertheless, households borrowed money from private sources against high rates

10 Literature Review 36 of interest to invest in water infrastructure in the form of wells, bore wells and water extraction mechanisms hoping that water security would lead to higher returns. The result was exponential increase in the quantum of groundwater extraction with time. In short, groundwater extraction beyond aquifer capacity took place almost throughout India including in the semi arid and arid regions. Many studies have brought out the impact in the form of unprecedented decline in water levels, groundwater mining and deterioration of livelihoods aided by the ever increasing horse power of the pump sets to cope with the increasing hydraulic lifts (Mudrakartha, 2004; Mudrakartha et al. 2005; Kulkarni, 2005, Moench & Dixit, 2004, Rathore, M.S. 1990, 2003a). The Central Ground Water Authority which monitors groundwater levels through its own, as well as states network of well stations has been recording continuously increasing overexploited zones, thus portending current and potential groundwater crisis (CGWB & GoG, 2005). A major development in groundwater extraction has been the transformation of the well structure (Mudrakartha et al. 2005). Until mid sixties, dug wells or open wells comprised the popular medium of groundwater extraction. Increasing water crisis and depleting water levels have resulted in households drilling vertical, small diameter boreholes from the bottom of the wells, in particular in hard rock areas, as digging deeper wells was either uneconomical or was physically risky. These vertical extension bores, and the horizontal bores from well bottom especially in hard rock areas, have enhanced the yield of the wells. However, sooner, these wells have also started drying up as deeper and deeper zones were tapped through deepening. Deep vertical tube wells came into the scene, during and post the severe drought of , initially for meeting drinking water requirements (Rathore, 1994). After the drought period, the high capacity, imported drilling rigs were lying idle. In order to supplement uncertain or inadequate surface irrigation supply, the Green Revolution farmers commissioned the rigs for drilling deep tube wells and install submersible pump sets. This paved the way for more and more private drilling rigs to enter the water sector resulting in ever increasing private capital formation. The following three decades saw hectic drilling activity all over the country, including in

11 Literature Review 37 remote villages. There was competition to catch up with the depleting water levels and extract groundwater by deploying high horse power submersible pump sets. In the process a water crisis was being created. A large number of wells were going dry year after year due to depleting water levels. While the rate of well failure was as high as 70% (in hard rock areas) in certain states like Tamil Nadu and parts of Andhra Pradesh, it was 50% (in alluvial) in western states such as Gujarat [Shah, 2005; Mudrakartha et al. 2005] thus creating non-performing assets (Mudrakartha, 2004). The failure did not elude the small and marginal farmers. In fact, many of these farmers even from arid and semi arid regions have joined the bandwagon of drilling activity by borrowing money at high rates of interest from private moneylenders to tap groundwater. As the secular decline of groundwater levels set in, their wells were the first to dry up adversely affecting their agrarian livelihood income. Dairy too was affected due to dependence of fodder on agriculture. The communities under the patronage of nongovernmental agencies have responded by taking up water harvesting activities to improve water levels. This effort was supplemented by the watershed programme launched by the Government of India in 1995 implemented through district rural development agencies (DRDA) and later by some state governments through some other projects. DEPLETING WATER LEVELS AND WATER SCARCITY: RESPONSES BY GOVERNMENT AND CIVIL SOCIETY Focused efforts on water harvesting or artificial recharging in India have begun in the past three decades or so. This also includes research and experimentation by government institutions. With increasing water scarcity, the debate on water harvesting has picked up in particular in the past two decades. Three basic types of recharging are recognised: [a] direct, [b] indirect and [c] induced (Sakthivadivel, 2001). In direct recharge, water percolates down to the groundwater table and helps in enhancing the available volume of groundwater in that area. For this purpose, the percolated water has to first saturate the overburden as well as compensate for evapotranspiration losses before it reaches the

12 Literature Review 38 groundwater table. Indirect recharge is facilitated by structures such as ponds, tanks, natural depressions and depressions in water bodies facilitating accumulation of water even during non-flow conditions in the water courses. Artificially induced recharge involves percolation of water through water harvesting structures constructed for the purpose such as ponds, tanks, check dams, tube wells, canals and spreading channels. Two key stakeholders are recognised in these efforts: one, the government agencies, and two, the civil society (which includes individual households as entities). Response by the government agencies The major agencies in the government sector comprise the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) and to a certain extent, state Groundwater departments. In terms of research and experimentation, by far, the government and research agencies, barring a few NGOs and CSOs, have carried out plans, designs and evaluation. Among other demonstrations, CGWB has utilised percolation tanks, check dams, dug wells, surface spreading methods and recharge shafts in select parts of the country. Athavale (2003) describes some of them: i. CGWB carried out artificial recharge experimentation on percolation tanks and check dams in the basaltic terrain of Maharashtra (CGWB, 2000). The experiments have yielded important results: (i) The total capacity utilisation of the percolation tanks was found to be as high as 150% as there were several fillings in a given monsoon season, while that of the check dams was 400%. These structures also had performed at an efficiency level of 91% and 94% respectively. (ii) The additional water was part of the surplus flow computed for the subject watershed 13. (iii) There was overall improvement in the groundwater levels in the wells; even during the ensuing summer, contrary to earlier situation, wells had some water. (iv) The experimentation has proved the techno-economic feasibility of the artificial recharge techniques in basaltic terrain with no adverse environmental impact. 13 Watershed no. WR-2, Amaravati district, categorized as an overexploited watershed.

13 Literature Review 39 ii. Another study in Jeur Sub-basin of Ahmednagar district in similar basaltic terrain carried out on percolation tanks indicated that the recharge to groundwater or effectiveness of percolation tanks varied from as low as one-third to three-fourths, averaging half. This depended upon several factors such as the silt/sediment load in the percolation tank, design, evaporation losses, and above all on the recipient of the recharged water, that is the degree of porosity and permeability (CGWB 2000). The experiments also demonstrated that recharge on basaltic terrain is effective due to the vesicular and fractured formation; the evaporation was found to be within 15% of the total storage. iii. Artificial recharge was carried out through an injection well using canal water in the Ghaggar river basin of Haryana. The injection was done both by gravity and under pressure. The study found that the recharge rate obtained with injection under pressure is almost ten times the gravity method. During the recharge cycle, the clogging of the injection well due to silt entry was a serious problem, and periodical cleaning therefore was essential, in particular, when the injection pressure exceeded 6 atmospheres. As regards injection under gravity was concerned, the study found that the inducing zone from the river recharge to the aquifer should be at least 100 metres away. iv. CGWB and the Gujarat Water Resources Development Corporation Limited, Government of Gujarat, have jointly carried out experimentation in Mehsana and in coastal Saurashtra with UNDP. In Mehsana, known for 150% groundwater development and severe depletion of water levels, a pilot artificial recharge experiment was conducted through injection wells, connector wells and by infiltration channels and ponds. Surplus water from plain aquifers of the major rivers in Mehsana and tail-end releases from the Dharoi canal system (Sabarmati river basin) were utilised for these feasibility studies. Similarly, in the coastal Saurashtra, artificial recharge was injected through injection wells and recharge basins in order to check the coastal salinity ingress, a serious concern here. Storm water as well as tail-end releases from the canal system of Hiran river irrigation

14 Literature Review 40 project were used to inject water. v. There are a large number of tanks in India existing since centuries. However, due to lack of maintenance for several reasons, the tanks, in particular the percolation tanks have stopped functioning. For example, in Yerravcheruvu tank in Andhra Pradesh, it was noticed that although the tank was full after a thunderstorm, the well nearest the command area still remained dry indicating that no percolation was taking place (Athavale, 2003). Removing top layers of sediments/silt have resulted in enhancing the rate of infiltration of water significantly (Mousavi and Rezai, 1999). vi. In order to experiment a siphon method of transferring tank water to an aquifer, the National Geophysical Research Institute designed a simple method. The tank water was transferred through siphon method into a well with an in-well borehole at the bottom. The water was recharged at a rate of litres per minute on an average in an experiment that lasted 190 days (Athavale, 2003). vii. Other methods researched include groundwater recharge from tanks through a deep borehole along with adequate filter arrangements for trapping silt/sediments. While the Andhra Pradesh State Groundwater Department has carried out experiments in hard rock areas (Athavale, 2003), the author has carried it out in alluvial areas (Mudrakartha, 2004). As in some parts of the country, in Gujarat too, there were responses both by the State and by the civil society to addressing water scarcity. The first type of response by the Gujarat government was in the form of grandiose plans and schemes (Shah, 1998) which has been the overarching policy in India. River water diversion schemes by the government are a typical example. The rationale was that since there is a huge variation in rainfall from 300 mm in the south to 1200 mm in the east (south Gujarat), the surface water from the water surplus south Gujarat should be transported to water deficit north Gujarat, Kachchh and Saurashtra to correct the imbalance. Small rivers in south Gujarat

15 Literature Review 41 were linked with the Ukai dam from where the water is transported into Narmada through a Tapi-Narmada High Level Canal. The Rs.540 billion Kalpasar 14 project is another grandiose scheme, yet to take off, aiming to create a huge fresh water reservoir by damming the Gulf of Khambhat connecting the east and west banks of the Gulf. It is estimated that more than 30,000 MCM of inland water flows off into the sea annually from the basins of Sabarmati, Mahi, Dhadar and Narmada. The proposed Kalpasar dam is expected to store this huge volume together with the waters from almost 100 (not perennial) Saurashtra rivers discharging into the Gulf of Khambhat. The stored water will be used for irrigation, water supply and industrial requirements of the Saurashtra region. Through a 660-km canal system, 1.05 million hectares of land in coastal Saurashtra will be irrigated. Power generation of 5880 MW is expected to be generated from the tidal energy. Other aims of the Kalpasar project include land reclamation, transportation improvements and fisheries development. A final decision is due in December 2009 based on recommendations of various committees on the extent of the dam from among the five alignments, the largest being 64-km across will determine the extent of benefits too 15. The second type of response by the government of Gujarat is to take off or build up on the gains of the Saurashtra recharging movement when the Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Project (also called Sardar Jal Sanchay Yojana-SJSY) was launched on the 17th of January This is because the previous effort of promoting check dams did not meet with success. The SPPWCP is a revamp of the previous experience with an idea of capitalizing on the Saurashtra recharging movement leadership and participation. The following reasons have compelled the government to launch the SPPWCP: [a] Till 1999, the construction of Check dams was carried out either through tendering or departmentally. As per the government of Gujarat s own admission 16, the progress of execution of works was so slow that only 2500 check dams could be constructed till 1999 in Gujarat State out of which 1341 were constructed during under the 14 accessed 8 August DNA, April 10, accessed 9 August 2009.

16 Literature Review 42 Government sponsored Own your check dam Programme. Even the involvement of NGOs was not effective. Looking at the tremendous participation in the recharging movement in Saurashtra and having attended some of the biggest conventions organized by the movement leaders, the then chief minister of Gujarat has decided to launch the revamped Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Programme (SPPWCP) all over the state. [b] During , there was the 90:10 scheme for construction of check dams with 90% of the cost as subsidy and 10% as local contribution from the beneficiaries. In spite of the high subsidy, there were not many takers, with less than 200 check dams constructed in two years of the scheme (Shah 1998, Nagar, 2002). In contrast, people were happily contributing 10-20% or more in the privately supported well recharging activities, for many years then. [c] The grand conventions organized by NGOs (like the one on 19th December 1998 and in 1999 by the Saurashtra Jaldhara Trust (described in section 4, Chapter 2) for which the chief minister of the state was invited as chief guest encouraged the government to tie up with the well recharge promoters. [d] There were clear political advantages that could be derived from collaborating with the promoters of the movement which has stood the test of time for more than a decade by that time (in ). [e] During (the worst drought in ten years period), the 113 dams in Saurashtra region could store only 140 MCM out of a storage capacity of 2200 MCM (Shingi et al. 2002; Nagar 2002, Rathore, 2005). This storage, which constitutes hardly 6% of the total storage capacity available, did not suffice even drinking water requirements. In contrast, many villages that have participated in the well recharging movement not only did not face drinking water problem, but had reasonable crop yields and animal husbandry income, even during the low rainfall years. [f] Above all, the Government had noticed that an intense awakening was taking place among the people on the importance of water 18. They found that several social workers and service oriented NGOs had successfully implemented several water conservation projects by collecting voluntary contributions from the people for harvesting rainwater to recharge groundwater which addressed can be utilized for drinking and agricultural purposes. With this background, the GoG launched Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation 17 Saurashtra, among other areas in Gujarat, suffered drought a drought spell from ) accessed 9 August 2009.

17 Literature Review 43 Project or the Sardar Patel Jal Sanchay Yojana (SJSY) and invested over Rs.1180 million in the construction of 10,708 check dams distributed over Saurashtra, Kutch, Ahmedabad, and Sabarkantha region. Saurashtra capitalised on this opportunity by sourcing more than 95% of the check dams, that is, 10,205 check dams. As part of making the check dam construction simpler, the government provided six prototype designs with various costs, maximum being Rs. 1 million. However, small and medium check dams were given priority. The deputy executive engineer, who is available at the taluka level, was authorised to sanction check dams upto Rs. 100,000. In this revamped SPPWCP, the participation of people was encouraging which could be seen from the following. The scheme covered a total of 1469 villages out of the 4029 villages of Saurashtra covering 36% of the total. In other words, there was one check dam in 25% (389) of the villages under the 60:40 scheme, 32% (467) villages had 2 to 3 check dams, and almost 75% villages had 5 or less check dams; 5% (75) had more than 25 check dams. The storage capacity of the check dams varied from a minimum of.0001 MCM to a maximum of MCM. The average storage capacity of constructed check dams was considered as MCM. Depending on the size, the check dam construction took anywhere between two weeks to 3 months. The SPPWCP or SJSY was perhaps a step in the right direction as can be seen from the key guidelines given below which were simple and clear. [a]any group of farmers/ngo could apply to the concerned deputy executive engineer of their area, who would give his approval. [b] Flexibility for own designs by the NGO/farmers group existed which were however to be technically approved by the engineers. However, the government has provided 6 prototypes to suit different sites. [c] On completion of the construction activity, the deputy executive engineer would visit the site, carry out measurements, verify bills and forward the same to the executive engineer for final approval and release of payment. The entire procedure was to be completed within seven days of submission of the bills by the beneficiary group. Strict instructions existed to avoid any delays at any levels of approvals.

18 Literature Review 44 Although the independent evaluation by IIMA (Shingi et al. 2002) has considered the project as overall achieving its objectives, it has also pointed out at the entry of private contractors to the extent of about 19%, during the later stage (that is, during the second year of the project itself) and recommended that it be curbed. From then and till now, the programme has faced major problems for various reasons, and made some gains which are given below 19 : [a] One of the basic issues with the programme is the lack of preparedness in terms of orientation of the executives, namely the engineers at the taluka and district levels. The government only made provision for physical scale up through funds disposal but not for developing the skills of the engineers for dealing with the people and their problems. Nor, were they trained to learn tricks of participation from the NGOs who have already built up the social capital. Social capital too can become weak in the face of temptations and can prove to be the undoing of the collectives. This has started happening when the contractors constructed the check dams without any contribution in the form of participation. The net result was that people saw it as government scheme and the check dam as a government check dam in place of our check dam. [b] The payments were to be made in three stages, that is, at the completion of foundation, super structure and finish. However, at each of the stages, there was often delay due to the limited number of engineers available on the staff role, and the large number of check dams under construction simultaneously (Shingi et al. 2002). The engineers were supposed to visit the check dam site, monitor, make verifications, and release payments. [c] At each stage, the implementing person/agency had to invest money in advance and wait for releases which were inordinately delayed, due to various reasons, including corruption. Guidelines stipulated that ten per cent of the approved cost of check dam was to be released after the check dam survived the overflow of rainwater during the succeeding monsoon. While very few farmers or NGOs could afford these delays, or had capacity to invest and wait for more than a year for complete payment to happen, the local contractors secured the work orders in the names of local farmers and made profit. This was just like another business activity for them. Thus, the whole spirit of participatory programme was 19 These include personal experience with the programme.

19 Literature Review 45 gradually eroded. [c] Many complaints were made regarding favoritism in allocation of check dams; totally unconnected, inexperienced agencies such as a marriage bureau, travel agency were also sanctioned projects. [d] Although monitoring mechanism was in place, it was bureaucracy-driven and target-driven with no impactful functioning. [e] The scheme was also open to farmers, either as individuals or as a group. Many individual farmers have taken advantage of the 60% subsidy to construct check dams close to their farmlands, which have benefitted them immensely (Mudrakartha, 2005, Reddy V.R, and M.S. Rathore, 1993). Wherever the committed agencies or individual promoters have leveraged these projects, the work went on well with people s participation, ownership and work quality ensured. However, the goings on from the areas in the neighborhood where contractors were implementing, and no people s contribution was collected (it was subsidized by the contractor) (Shingi et al. 2002), led to certain amount of weakening of the contributory fabric of the people. To counter the undue influence from such areas, leaders of NGO groups had to put their foot down to maintain their quality and level of work. The role of diamond and textile business men in the take off of SPPWCP was commendable as they convinced the unbelieving people to participate. People s suspicion mainly related to government s release of instalments. The same people along with the NGOs have countervailed the undue influence to a good extent. However, there has been a certain dilution of participation that happened due to government way of approach, depending of course upon the local leadership and their grip on the villagers. In the ultimate analysis, the following key points have emerged: [a] Large number of structures have come to be installed, with mixed success. In any case, the amount of recharge has increased considerably making a difference to the farmers in terms of irrigation water availability through wells. [b] Where contractors were involved and people were indifferent, such structures provided employment in the least. Where local contractors from villages were involved; the quality of structures was reasonably good, as the farmer-contractor had sense of belongingness to the area. [c] There was a significant dilution of people s emotional and physical contributions, overall, in the whole process.

20 Literature Review 46 [d] As can be seen from the guidelines, a lot depended upon the attitude and commitment level of the concerned engineers, which was highly varying, and who were the key to effective implementation of the project. Response by the civil society As for the civil society response, many small localised efforts have been made. The notable ones are the pani panchayats (water councils), and the recent Tarun Bharat Sangh and the Saurashtra Recharging Movement which stand out as large experiments in groundwater recharging (Rathore, 2003). A pani panchayat is a collective action of farmers for water conservation and management. The experiment by Vasanthrao Salunke, a Pune-based engineer-turned industrialist, was begun during the drought of 1970 on a leased land of 16 acres in Naigon with funding support from local industrialists (Keermane et al. 2006). The first pani panchayat that emerged in 1979 had clear rules regarding water sharing, collective crop decisions, and equity principles. Farmers found that the water was available in their wells for eight months; this encouraged 59 other villages to adopt the pani panchayat. However, subsequently, Salunke lost interest in development works after he lost his election to Maharashtra Assembly elections in mideighties; the consequence was that the number of collectives reduced to 19, and gradually become dormant. The TBS focused on developing ponds and tanks as key water storage and recharge structures initially, and later included check dams; Saurashtra recharging movement concentrated on direct well recharging initially and later moved over to check dams, farm ponds, gully plugs and tanks. TBS as a non-governmental institution has provided the lead while for the Saurashtra movement, there has been no overarching institution. The non-governmental agencies came onto the scene gradually. The following gives a description of the efforts of TBS and the Saurashtra recharging movement in brief. Tarun Bharat Sangh, Rajasthan Tarun Bharat Sangh (TBS) is one of the very few success stories that could be termed as a social movement. It has inspired many individuals and agencies across India and

21 Literature Review 47 abroad, and has reinforced the belief that with social mobilisation, rivers can be regenerated and groundwater levels can be improved. TBS was formed by a small group of youngsters interested in rural development in the year Based on principles of gram Swavalamban (self reliance), TBS engaged in working for soil conservation, improved seeds, collection of herbal medicine, forest management and water conservation initially through voluntary labour. Rajendrasingh, the Magsaysay Award winner for 2001, coordinated all these activities to integrate and gel with a village s cycle of rituals and traditions so that people would accept and absorb the same in a routine manner. TBS also successfully persuaded the government to close down ecologically damaging mines and quarries in the Sariska National Park under the orders of the Supreme Court of India. This was part of the effort to regenerate forests that were felled leading to increases in run off; TBS also focused on regeneration of forests from 1986 onwards. For this, Singh was awarded Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar (1994), Tiger Conservation Award (1999) and Jamnalal Bajaj Award (2005) among others. In the field of water conservation, TBS has done pioneering work by facilitating construction of 8600 johads (water harvesting structures) in 1058 villages spread over 6500 sq. km in the districts of Alwar, Dausa, Sawai Madhopur, Karoli and Jaipur in Rajasthan state. While TBS was instrumental in constructing 3500 johads, the rest 5100 johads were constructed by villages themselves as they had witnessed the benefits of the structures. TBS also extended its work to Jaisalmer, Ajmer, Udaipur and Bharatpur districts. Because of all these efforts, five seasonal rivers, namely, Ruparel, Arvari, Sarsa, Bhagani and Jahajwali in northeastern Rajasthan have now become perennial 20 (Rathore, 1998, 2003a; Shiva, 2002). In terms of institutional arrangements, TBS initiated a (Arvari) River Parliament with representation from 70 villages that the river flows through, much along the democratic pattern of governance in India (Rathore, 2003). In the year 2001, TBS has started jal 20 accessed 6 August 2008.

22 Literature Review 48 biradari (water community) to create awareness on National Water Policy throughout India by networking with other NGOs in different states. Further, to create consciousness and equip people with skills, TBS has started a Tarun Jal Vidyapeeth which offers a twoyear diploma course to any person with or without any formal educational background; there are also some short duration courses catering to different needs 21. TBS has carried out jal yatras, water campaigns, conventions and conferences in addition to networking with other agencies to spread awareness on the need for water conservation and for social mobilisation. Singh has also served as an advisor to some state governments and member of committees in the water sector with both governments and non-governmental agencies. TBS has also adopted a confrontationist approach as and when necessary such as in the case of the mines and quarries 22 and construction of check dams. In terms of watershed projects, TBS has worked in 850 villages out of which about 200 have been made drought-proof 23. This means, that even if these villages receive less than 3 inches of rain per annum they will face none of the hardships of drought. The only awareness that they will need to have is not to take crops which consume too much water and not to waste any water accessed 6 August TBS has filed a case against illegal mining activity in the area reserved as Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan state. The petition alleged that there were notifications prohibiting all mining activity, and yet the State Government had granted hundreds of licences for mining marble, dolomite and other materials and that such section was contrary to law. This was damaging the ecology, environment and was against rule of law. The Court appointed a committee to ensure due observance of the various Acts and Notifications that had been issued in respect of the protected area. The committee stated that there were 215 mines completely falling within the areas declared as protected forest while 47 mines fell partly inside and partly outside the areas declared as protected forest. and accessed 6 August accessed 6 August 2008.