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Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Scheme - Water Conservation through Partnership Between People and Government - Success Story Of Gujarat

1.0 Introduction:

1.1 Gujarat State has taken up several innovative initiatives in the field of infrastructure development for conserving water resources. Prior to providing the details of water conservation activities initiated by Gujarat State, it will be imperative to place before the salient geographical and water related information of Gujarat State for better understanding of the water related conditions of Gujarat State.

1.2 Gujarat State - An Overview:

Gujarat state is situated on the west coast of India. The total geographical area is 1,96,000 sq.kms with a coastal length of 1600 kms, which is one-third of the coastal length of India.

The cultivable area of the State measures at 124 Lac ha. which forms two-third of the total area of the State.

Even after considering present irrigation potential and future potential created by Sardar Sarovar Narmada Project over 65 Lac ha of land can not be supplied irrigation water.

1.3 State of Water - the Lifeline:

Gujarat has quite fertile land with average rainfall varying throughout state from 14 inches per annum to 45 inches per annum. There are 17 river basins in Gujarat main land, 71 river basins in Saurashtra region and 97 river basins in Kachchh region. Gujarat State is water scarce state and is frequently hit by droughts due to scanty rain fall. Though, more than 184 Major and Medium irrigation schemes exist in the state, several parts of North Gujarat, Saurashtra and Kachchh regions frequently suffer from severe water scarcity conditions forcing the authorities to supply water by tankers. Thus surface water being insufficient, ground water is being exploited to a great extent to protect the agriculture thanks to which complex problems have appeared.

40 talukas have been demarcated as overexploited, 10 as dark and 7 as saline.

People face drinking water crisis and to sustain life has become a difficult task at many places. Water levels in tubewells in certain areas of North Gujarat have come down to 1000 feet below ground level.

1.4 The Way-out:

The main and significant solution lies in conserving each and every drop of rain water during the monsoon period by constructing suitable water conservation structures in these regions and diverting the surface water, which otherwise merges with the seas in the form of run off into these structures.

Obviously the most viable water conservation structures in these areas are check dams, which are capable of collecting and conserving the precious water resources and at the same time help in replenishing and recharging the ground water in the wells existing in the adjacent areas.

1.5 Check dams are designed to cope with the flow of water in the rivers and are constructed of height of 1.5 to 2.0m. Wells and tube wells in the surroundings are benefited because of enhanced ground water recharge. The storage of these check dams varies between 0.015 Mm3 to 0.035 Mm3.

1.5 Why Check dams:

Check dams generally require less operation and maintenance compared to surface irrigation projects. Check dams are low weirs without canals off-taking, but they provide facility for Lift Irrigation and for lifting from wells recharged in the surrounding area.

Check dams are therefore the most effective tool for water conservation at the minimum investment and minimum maintenance and operational cost. They act as ground water recharge means and they offer facility of lift irrigation in the surrounding directly from the reservoir or from the wells recharged in the surroundings. About 7 wells in the surrounding are recharged by each check dam. 10 ha. of land is benefited by each check dam.

Check dams do not require land acquisition and hence most of the legal complications are avoided in the whole process. Moreover the advantages are made available to the beneficiaries instantly. Because of low cost of check dams, poor farmers can also participate.

1.6 Advantages of Checkdams :

Protection to Kharif crop with the help of ground water recharge
Water levels in the vicinity of the dam to come up and assured water facilities are available for drinking and agricultural use
Live stocks need not worry about the availability of water.
Effective in restricting soil erosion.
Enhanced agricultural Production and easing of drinking water problem
No question of acquisition of land
Easy and effective methods of water conservation
No need for modern and expensive technological developments
Has provided employment opportunities to local residents.

Advantages are wide spread and equitable distribution of water resources is also possible. This leads to balanced socio-economical progress.

1.7. Gujarat State was implementing Water Conservation works like the construction of Checkdams earlier under which the works were carried out either through tendering or departmentally.

As a result, the progress of the execution of works was so slow that only 2500 checkdams were constructed upto the year 1999 in Gujarat State. Out of these, 1341 checkdams were constructed during 1991-99 under the Government sponsored Own your checkdam Programme. The cost incurred was Rs 55 Crores. Even the involvement of NGOs to speed up the progress did not yield results, since the NGOs work in clusters and work in limited areas. After reviewing the above programmes, Government of Gujarat has decided to take up Participatory Water Conservation Programme for achieving the gigantic task of implementing water conservation programmes all over the state.

1.8 Need for improved water conservation scheme :

Failure of monsoon at that time in the state leading to acute shortage of drinking water supply in region of saurastra,kuchchh and North Gujarat right from the beginning of winter season itself had created a precarious situation. Of the total accumulated capacity of 2200 MCM water in 113 dams existing in the Saurashtra region, only 140 MCM water had accumulated by that time. This accumulated water had been reserved exclusively for drinking water supply. Such situation had not developed during the previous 10 years in the state.

2.0 Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Project (SPPWCP)

The Government had noticed that an intense awakening was taking place among the people residing in these region about the importance of water. several social workers and service  oriented Non Government Organization (NGOs) had undertaken several water conservation projects in these regions by collecting voluntary contributions from the people for harvesting rainwater to recharge ground water which can be utilized for drinking and agricultural purposes. Their efforts and results have been overwhelmingly successful. With this background, the GOG launched Sardar Patel Participatory Water Conservation Project (SPPWCP).

In response to several representations from members of legislative Assembly, people of the region, and the NGOs, the government, therefore, decided to earmark funds from the Budgetary provisions to take up these people oriented works on a sufficiently large scale with the active participation of people SPPWCP project was approved to initiate construction of check dams, renovation of village tanks and ponds, and construction of recharge wells with partnership between the Government and the beneficiary people.

The project has been implemented in several phases on basis of experience gained; representations received from the people / NGOs, recommendation of the I.I.M. Ahmedabads reports etc.

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