Adoption and Impact of Water-Saving Technologies in the Nagarjuna Sagar Project Area of Andhra Pradesh
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Agricultural Economics Research Review 2019, 32 (2), 229-237 DOI: 10.5958/0974-0279.2019.00034.X Adoption and impact of water-saving technologies in the Nagarjuna Sagar Project area of Andhra Pradesh M Balasubramanian1*, P Anbukkani1, M L Nithyashree1, K Krishna Reddy2 and T Arivelarasan3 1ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi 110012, India 2National Institute of Rural Development & Panchayathi Raj, Hyderabad, Telangana 500030, India 3Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore 641003, Tamil Nadu, India *Corresponding author: [email protected] Abstract Under the Climate Change and Adaptation (ClimaAdapt) programme, in the Nagarjuna Sagar Project area of Andhra Pradesh, water-saving interventions were conducted. To examine their impact, a study was carried out in the districts Nalgonda (Telangana) and Guntur (Andhra Pradesh). In all three water-saving interventions—alternating wetting and drying, modified System of Rice Intensification, and direct sowing of rice—capacity-building raised crop yield and farmer income. The direct seeded rice method reduced the cost of cultivation by about INR 11,000 per hectare. Keywords Adoption, impact of climate change, water-saving interventions (WSI), Village Knowledge Centre (VKC), capacity-building JEL classification Q54, Q25, Q58 Climate change has increased the frequency of extreme decades in many parts of South Asia, the production weather events in many parts of the world, and it of rice, wheat, and maize has fallen because of water adversely and significantly affects agriculture, food stress, arising partly from increasing temperature; the security, water resources, and biodiversity. Climate increasing frequency of El Nino; and a drop in the change increases rainfall variability and average number of rainy days (Cruz et al. 2007). temperature, and affect both the supply and demand side of the irrigation equation. Higher temperatures Farmers practise soil conservation techniques and increase evaporation, and crops use more water. The undertake water-saving irrigation practices. They plant effects vary by location; however, because enhanced trees, change the sowing time, and change crops or climatic variability reduces the effectiveness of water varieties. These adaptation strategies mitigate climate storage systems, farmers must adapt to lower soil change impacts and the vulnerability of people; moisture and higher evaporation (IWMI 2009). enhance the sustainable use of natural resources; and Worst affected are South Asia, Southeast Asia, and sub- enrich the ecosystem and keep it healthy (Baig et al. Saharan Africa, where depending on the location 2016). Compared to conventional paddy cultivation, temperatures are likely to rise by 2°C–4°C. The Fourth new rice-growing techniques use less water, and their Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on water productivity is higher. Some of these new Climate Change IPCC (2007) projects that techniques are the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) temperatures in South Asia will rise by 0.5°C–1.2°C (Stoop, Uphoff, and Kassam 2002) and alternating rise by 2020, 0.88°C–3.16°C by 2050, and 1.56°C– wetting and drying (AWD) (Bouman, Lampayan, and 5.44°C by 2100 (Cline 2007). Over the past few Tuong 2007; Lampayan et al. 2015). 230 Balasubramanian M, Anbukkani P, Nithyashree M L, Krishna Reddy K, Arivelarasan T The Indian sub-continent has a large population; purposively for this study; in Guntur district, agriculture predominates and the resource base is poor. Narasaraopet, Chilakaluripet, Muppalla, and Nadendla That is why it is one of the regions most vulnerable to mandals were chosen. From the chosen mandals, 178 climate change. Since 1950, India has been farm households were purposively selected; these experiencing a warming climate, a decline in monsoon included 138 adopters and 40 non-adopters (which spells, and frequent droughts; and the frequency of were used as the control). For analysing the impact of high-intensity rainfall in the past three decades is proof adaptation measures and training, we selected farmers of the consequences of climate change. Steps have to who adopted water-saving practices like AWD, MSRI, be taken to mitigate its effects. In Andhra Pradesh and and DSR. A well-structured schedule was used to Telangana, several adaptation strategies were proposed: collect the required information. capacity-building on awareness of climate change; and implementation of water-saving practices such as direct Analytical tools seeded rice (DSR), mechanized or modified System We used standard cost concepts to calculate the cost of of Rice Intensification (MSRI), and AWD; the use of cultivation and returns separately for adopters and non- Azolla as green manure and livestock feed; and weather adopters. The gross margin was calculated to suppress index insurance. the fixed cost effect in the revenue. In the overview, To implement these techniques, cluster approach the gross margin and yield parameters were given more methodologies were used to scale the adaptation and significance than other variables. The ‘before and after’ approach was used to assess the impact of water-saving mitigation strategies, and adaptation strategies were techniques for adopters and non-adopters; it was implemented in the Climate Change and Adaptation compared over the period from 2012 to 2015. The (ClimaAdapt) project area over four years to improve situation prior to ClimaAdapt was assessed through a the resilience of the agriculture and water sectors of detailed baseline survey of 1,000 farmers from the the Krishna and Cauvery river basins in three states— distributary channels of Telangana (DC-4) and Andhra Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu. This Pradesh (DC-21). project—funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Royal Norwegian Embassy, New Delhi—was Results and discussion implemented from 2012 to 2015. This study of the socio-economic impacts of the Socio-economic profile of households selected WSI in the ClimaAdapt programme aims to The average age of the sample farmers is 45 years, and understand the farmers’ awareness, perceptions, and the difference in the ages of adopters and non-adopters attitude about climate change. We also estimate the is significant (Table 1). Among the sample farms, the impact that adopting water-saving techniques had on average operational area of non-adopters is 1.68 ha, farmers and identify the constraints that adopters and which is a little higher than that of the adopters non-adopters faced. (1.20 ha). Canals are the only source of irrigation for 62% of the adopters and 77.5% of the non-adopters; Data and methodology therefore, more non-adopters than adopters cannot afford alternate sources (Table 1). Study area, sample size, and data collection The study was taken up in the Nagarjuna Sagar Project Source of irrigation for sample farmer area of the Krishna river basin. Nalgonda district from The availability of canal water in any crop season is Telangana and Guntur district from Andhra Pradesh, the same as for the command area, but between the where the ClimaAdapt project was implemented, were head and tail the reach varies hardly between 20 and selected for the study, focusing particularly on the 25 days. In the kharif season, the only source of distributary committees (DC) 4 and 21 in the respective irrigation for 65% of the farmers in the sample is canal districts. DC-4 covers an area of 8,497 hectare (ha) and water. Canal water is available for 113 days in the kharif DC-21 covers 9,652 ha. In Nalgonda district, season on average; adopters report that it is available Miryalaguda and Damaracherla mandals were selected for 137 days but non-adopters say it is available only Adoption and impact of water-saving technologies 231 Table 1 Socio-economic characteristics of adopters and non-adopters Variable Description Adopter Non-adopter All Age (years) 48 42 45 Level of education Illiterate 25(18) 9(22.5) 34(19) Primary 14(10) 2(5) 16(9) Secondary 47(34) 6(15) 53(30) Matriculation 40(29) 12(30) 52(29) College 12(9) 11(27.5) 23(13) Family size Adult 4 2 3 Children 3 2 3 Average size 4 2 3 Operational holding 1.2 1.68 1.44 Irrigation source Kharif season Canal 85(62) 31(77.5) 116(65) Borewell 21(15) 9(22.5) 21(12) Both 32(23) - 41(23) Average number of days canal water available 134 93 113 Rabi season Canal 72(52) 32(80) 104(63) Borewell 19(14) - 19(11) Both 36(26) 8(20) 44(26) Average number of days canal water available 83 93 88 Source Authors’ calculation based on field survey Note Figures in parentheses represent the percentage for 90 days. There is less water in the Nagarjuna Sagar realized by many of the farmers. In DC-4, DSR farmers Project area in the rabi season, and canal water is had felt 100%, whereas only 40% of sample farmers available for 88 days only; the other parameters are felt all the effects of climate change. Nearly 50% of mostly the same (Table 2). All the adopters get their the sample farmers feel the effects of climate change, first-hand information about canal water from the which is higher than in the adopter group. respective Village Knowledge Centres (VKC) developed by ClimaAdapt. The adoption of new Training on crop and allied activities technologies is not influenced much by the average Under ClimaAdapt, VKCs provided strategy training age of farmers, experience in farming, or family size. programmes on WSI, crop management practices, allied activities, and risk management strategies. Under Awareness of climate change and adaptation WSI, farmers were trained on climate change and water Climate change is a broad concept, but farmers feel its use efficiency; under risk management strategies, they effects—an increase in the day or night temperature; were trained on the weather-based crop insurance erratic rainfall, including late or early onset of scheme.