International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017, pp.-4385-4390. Available online at http://www.bioinfopublication.org/jouarchive.php?opt=&jouid=BPJ0000217

Research Article STUDY OF GROUNDWATER BEHAVIOUR INTHE BELLAN CANAL COMMAND IN DISTRICT OF

ALAM M.A.1, KUMAR Y.2, SHARMA H.C.3, AHSAN MD JAFRI4*, JOHN WESLEY C.5 AND SINGH VIKRAM6 1,2,3Department of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering, G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, 263145, U.S. Nagar, Uttarakhand, 4,5,6Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Vaugh Institute of Engineering and Technology, Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad, 211007, U.P., India *Corresponding Author: [email protected]

Received: August 09, 2016; Revised: May 31, 2017; Accepted: June 01, 2017; Published: June 24, 2017

Abstract- The study of groundwater behavior, in the Bellan canal command, was conducted using ground water table data of last 20 years. The study indicated that about 4.30 % area of canal command was having annual seasonal fluctuation of water table as less than 0.5m, 37.95 % area from 0.5 to 1.0 m, 12.17 % area from 1.0 to 1.5 m, 18.13 % area from 1.5 to 2.0 m and in remaining 27.45 % area it was more than 2m. On the basis of average annual seasonal water table fluctuation map, the declination of depth to water table was observed at Tangkalan in Koraon block during pre-monsoon and post- monsoon seasons during the year 1994, whereas for the year 2013, it showed the water table mound around Dasaunti and Shambhu Chak in Meja and Urwa blocks respectively. Fall of water table level was also observed at Koraon hydrograph station at Koraon block during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon season of the year. The overall trend of groundwater table in the canal command was having declining trend, while some of the hydrograph station it was neither rising nor falling except in Paranipur hydrograph station of Urwa block where the water table was found in rising trend in pre-monsoon period. Soil texture, increase in number of minor irrigation structures, existing cropping pattern, and increasing demand of groundwater for human and industrial consumption were found the main causes of over exploitation. The study signified that, there was an urgent need for recharge planning in the command so that the water table could be arrested at the desired level. Keywords- Water table fluctuation, groundwater trend, groundwater over exploitation, Pre-Post Monsoon, Soil texture.

Citation: Alam M.A., et al., (2017) Study of Groundwater Behaviour in the Bellan Canal Command in of Uttar Pradesh. International Journal of Agriculture Sciences, ISSN: 0975-3710 & E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, pp.-4385-4390. Copyright: Copyright©2017 Alam M.A., et al., This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Academic Editor / Reviewer: Dr Dashrath Sadhu

Introduction ground water abstraction results in progressive lowering of water table and Earth is covered by 70 percent of water. Out of which, about 97 percent of the consequent decline in well yield in many parts of the country. Giving enough time world’s water resources are confined in the sea. 75 percent water of the rest 3 to percolate surface water can aid in improving the health of existing groundwater percent water is bounded by ice sheets, glaciers etc. The remaining 25 percent is condition. The hydrological equilibrium is a must between all inlets and outlets of a available in the form of surface and groundwater known as available water. basin for the sustainability of groundwater. As a fact the groundwater should be Therefore, to arrest the use of groundwater at the desired level, for human and extracted only to the extent so that it could be recharged. For this purpose, the other related consumption, is the need of the hour to secure both our present and study of water table behavior in different regions is a must. Many workers have future [1]. also conducted regional ground water behavior studies, like Kaushal et. al (1989) The total Annual Replenish able ground water resources of India, have been [3], Kumar & Seethapathi (2002) [4], Ambrish (2004) [5], Sarkar et. al (2006) [6], estimated as 431 billion cubic meter (BCM). The net annual ground water Dilip et. al (2010)[7],Kumar and Srinivas (2011)[8] etc. availability for the entire country is 396 BCM. The Annual ground water draft is 243 India is the second largest populated country with over 17.5 percent of the world’s BCM out of which 221 BCM is used for irrigation use and 22 BCM is for domestic population. According to the 2011 census, population of India was 128 crore which & industrial use [2]. is one sixth of the world's population. It is expected that by the year 2022 India India, on an account of increasing water demand due to its ever growing would become world's most populated country, by the year 2050 its population will population, is in a need to maximize its agriculture water productivity. The be reaching about 160crore (Anonymous, 2015). India has about 328 million ha tentatively ground water potential of country is being exploited for industrial, land area which is the seventh largest land area of the world. The cultivated area domestic, agriculture and human consumption etc. With erratic rainfall and limited of India was 169.27, 169.59 and 169.65 million ha in year 1992, 1997 and 2005, opportunities to access water from rivers, the need of agriculture sector cannot respectively. Population density has increased from 117 to 383 per sq.km from the depend alone on surface water. The groundwater provides a viable option to fulfill year 1951 to 2011. Thus, the total cultivable land for agriculture is reducing due to the demand for agricultural needs, however, one should be careful towards over increasing population and factors related to it, e.g. rapid industrial development, exploitation of ground water. Due to this, a decline in the levels of ground water in urbanization etc. This situation is ultimately increasing the pressure on the land to India along with many regions of the world has been of serious concern. feed the growing demand of the population. Groundwater occurrence and its movement vary in space and time. The excess The world’s two third of the fresh water is used for irrigation, with an appreciable

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4385 Study of Groundwater Behaviour in the Bellan Canal Command in Allahabad District of Uttar Pradesh

contribution coming from groundwater resources. During last two decades or so, structures were collected from Minor Irrigation Department of Allahabad, as well groundwater utilization has increased significantly for irrigation. India, on account as from Statistical Department of Allahabad. of increasing demand, due to its ever growing population, is in a need to maximize its agriculture potential. In our country, tentatively groundwater potential is assessed as about 350 billion cu-m and this potential can be exploited for industrial, domestic, agriculture and human consumption etc. With erratic rainfall and limited opportunities to access water from rivers, agricultural water requirements cannot depend alone on surface water. Groundwater provides a viable option to fulfil the agricultural needs, however one should be careful towards its over exploitation, as decline in the levels of groundwater in India along with many regions of the world has been of serious concern. In Uttar Pradesh, there are 10563 hydrograph stations which are being used to record the groundwater levels (pre and post-monsoon seasons). Water table depth in different parts of the Uttar Pradesh varies from 2 m to 30 m. Major variation was observed in the central and eastern regions of the state due to over exploitation of groundwater. The groundwater potential of the state has been assessed to be about 7.01 million ha-m/year, out of which 4.88 million ha-m/year is being utilized. Canal irrigation is the most widely used irrigation system in India as the majority of Indian farmers are usually poor and cannot afford to have their own irrigation facilities. The net area under canal irrigation is about 15.8 million ha in India. The main canal irrigated areas are in the northern plains of India which include the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Bihar accounting for about 60 percent of the canal irrigated area in the country [9]. Fig-1 Index map of the study area. In Uttar Pradesh, canals irrigate about 37 percent of the total irrigated area and about 3,091 thousand hectares area is under canal irrigation which is 19.56 Methodology percent of the total canal irrigated area of the country. Over one-fourth of the net Groundwater behavior in the Bellan Canal Command irrigated area of the state of Uttar Pradesh is irrigated by canals. However, farmers The study of groundwater behavior in the Bellan canal command was conducted, are not fully satisfied with the water supplied by most of the canals. In many of the on the basis of the water table depth data obtained from the 34 observation wells cases farmers complain that irrigation water is not available to them in adequate situated all over the command area, using the following procedure. amount and at the appropriate time, causing reduction in yield. The supply of water through canals can be erratic at times i.e., excess or insufficient. Excess Water Table Trend supply causes water logging and in sufficient do not fulfill the water requirement of The water table trend, in the Bellan canal command area during pre-monsoon and the crops in the command area of the canal. This ultimately results in low crop post-monsoon seasons forth period 1994-2013, was predicted using least square production. The canal authorities accept deficient water supply due to heavy method as given by Ground Water Department of Uttar Pradesh. It was suggested losses during conveyance caused by weeds, silting, etc. Losses can also result that if the percent regression coefficient of depth to water table was less than -5% from improper method of irrigation, and lack of training and awareness of farmers then water table is on rising and if it was more than +5% then the water table was for water management [10]. on falling trend,in between this range this water table would be neither rising nor Keeping it in view, the present study was taken up to study groundwater behavior falling trend. The water table trend of Bellan canal command area is given in in the Bellan Canal Command, so that proper groundwater utilization plan may be [Table-2]. adopted for sustainable use of groundwater resource and maintaining the groundwater level at the desired level. Results and Discussions Groundwater Behaviour General Description of the Study Area a) Water table fluctuation The study was conducted in the Bellan Canal Command which is located in The annual seasonal fluctuation of water table during 1994-2013 is shown in Allahabad district of Uttar Pradesh as shown in [Fig-1]. The Allahabad district lies [Table-1]. The table showed that about 4.30 % area was having annual seasonal between 24˚47' and 25˚43' N latitude and 81˚31' and 82˚21' E longitude. The fluctuation of water table less than 0.5m during the entire study period of 20 years, elevation of the district varies from 80 to 150 m above the MSL. The origin of the whereas about 37.95 % area was having fluctuation from 0.5 to 1.0 m, 12.17 Bellan canal is located at 24˚50'12.42" N latitude and 82˚4'41.34" E longitude at percent area from 1.0 to 1.5 m, 18.13 % area from 1.5 to 2.0 m and in remaining Meja Dam. The study area lies between 24˚48'32" to 25˚19'0" N latitude and 27.45 % area was having more than 2m. The annual average fluctuation of water 81˚44'38" to 82˚19'19" E longitude. The Meja Dam is constructed on the Bellan table, during study period is shown in [Fig-2]. River at Baraundha in Mirzapur district. This canal network is having one branch canal, 14 distributaries and 127 minors. b) Depth to water table: The Bellan canal system is one of the major irrigation project of Allahabad district Twenty years (1994 to 2013) data of depth to water table in the Bellan canal and four blocks of the district i.e. Meja, Manda, Urwa and Koraon having 1674 km2 command were analysed. The Pre-monsoon and the post-monsoon depth to area are covered under this network Canals. water table contour maps of the Bellan canal command for the years 1994, 2004 and 2013 are shown in [Figs-3 to 5]. The Pre- monsoon depth to water table in Collection of data during study period varied from 2.72 m to 22.80 m, whereas in post-monsoon Data of daily rainfall were collected from weather stations College of Forestry, season it varied from 2.05 m to 21.85 m. Allahabad Agricultural Institute- Deemed University, Whereas, the latitude and The Pre monsoon depth to water table in different blocks of the canal command longitude of the observation wells and well wise pre monsoon and post monsoon was found between 2.72 m to 8.80 m, 3.25 m to12.95 m, 3.40 m to 16.00 m, and groundwater level data (below ground surface) from 1994-2013 were obtained 5.00 m to 22.80 m in Koroan, Meja, Manda and Urwa blocks, respectively. from Central Groundwater Board Allahabad. Data on number of minor irrigation whereas, in post-monsoon season it varied from 2.05 m to 7.80 m, 2.05 m to

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4386 Alam M.A., Kumar Y., Sharma H.C., Ahsan Md Jafri, John Wesley C. and Singh Vikram

11.90 m, 2.15 m to 14.65 m and 5.82 m to 21.85 m in Koroan, Meja, Manda and Urwa blocks, respectively. Declination of depth to water table was observed at Tanga Kala in Koraon block during pre-monsoon as well as post- monsoon seasons during the year 1994. The depth to water table maps for the year 2013 indicated water table mound around Dasaunti and Shambhu Chak in Meja and Urwa blocks. Fall of water table level was also observed at Koraon hydrograph station at Koraon block during pre- monsoon and post-monsoon seasons of the year.

Table-1 Percent area of the Bellan Canal Command under different ranges of average annual seasonal fluctuation of water table in different time periods. Percent area under different ranges of average annual seasonal Period fluctuation of water table < 0.5 m 0.5 to 1.0 m 1.0 to 1.5 m 1.5 to 2.0 m > 2.0 m 1994-1999 18.67 59.96 15.62 2.10 4.35 1999-2004 51.75 29.36 11.66 3.40 2.80 2004-2009 1.27 25.55 28.2 16.54 28.54 2009-2013 13.76 33.7 10.54 13.91 30.54 1994-2013 4.30 37.95 12.17 18.13 27.45

(b). Post-monsoon Fig-3 Contour maps of depth to water table during the year 1994.

Fig-2 Average annual seasonal water table fluctuation map of the study area (1994-2013)

(a). Pre-monsoon

(b). Post-monsoon

(a). Pre-monsoon Fig-4 Contour maps of depth to water table during the year 2004.

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4387 Study of Groundwater Behaviour in the Bellan Canal Command in Allahabad District of Uttar Pradesh

block only at one place it was having falling trend whereas at 83.4% places it had neither rising nor falling trend. In Urwa block at 71.4% places it had falling trend and at 14.3% places rising trend, whereas at 14.3% it had neither rising nor falling trend. In this way at about 70.6% places the water table had falling trend, at 26.9% places it had neither rising nor falling trend, only at one place i.e. at Paranipur it had rising trend. The study indicated that in major portion of the Canal Command the water table during pre monsoon was continuously going down.

Post-monsoon trend: In post-monsoon season at Kheri, Lediyari, Garha, Ganjariya, Khajuri-Ahiree, Simribagh, Basehra, Karpiya, Chailari and Latifpur in Koraon block; Tendua, Kohrar Ghat, Madraha, Shahpur and Emiliya in Meja block; Dohatha, Manda and Nonwa in Manda block; and Urwa, Shambhu Pur and Shambhu Chak Balahan in Urwa block the water table had falling trend. Whereas at TangaKalan, Koraon and Panasa in Koraon block; ItwaKalan, Datta Ka Purwa and Dasaunti in Meja block; Pandepur, Desawar, Balaha in Manda block; and Aunta, Balhan, Bagaha and Paranipur in Urwa block the water table was neither having falling trend nor rising trend. The block wise trend of water table indicated that in Koraon block at 76.9% places it had falling trend and at 23.1% places it had neither rising nor falling trend. In Meja block about 62.5% places were having falling trend and 37.5 % places were having neither rising nor falling trend. In Manda block 50% places were having falling trend whereas neither rest 50% places it had neither rising nor (a). Pre-monsoon falling trend. In Urwa block at 42.9% places it had falling trend and at 57.1% places it had neither rising nor falling trend. The overall study showed that at about 61.8% places the water table had falling trend and at 38.2% places it had neither rising nor falling trend. These means the major area of the Canal Command was facing the problem of water table decline due to over exploitation of ground water in post-monsoon period. For the sustainable development of the area to the water table is to be arrested at the desired level.

Causes of Water Table Decline Survey of the study area and analysis of soil characteristics and groundwater behaviour showed some of the possible causes of water table decline in the Bellan canal command, as follows: 1. Soil texture 2. Increase in number of minor irrigation structures 3. Cropping pattern 4. Increasing demand of groundwater for human and industrial consumption. Soil texture Soil texture is the most stable physical characteristic of the soils which has influence on a number of other soil properties including structure, soil moisture availability, erodibility, root penetration and soil fertility. This is because texture is a composite of the coarse fraction (sand) and the finer fractions (silt and clay), and (b). Post-monsoon an increase or decrease in one component impart the opposite effect on the other Fig-5 Contour maps of depth to water table during the year 2013. and hence affects physic-chemical properties of the soils (Brady and Weil, 2008) [11]. The textural classification of soils showed that soils in the study area were c) Trend of groundwater level almost sandy loam. Trend of depth to water table during pre -monsoon and post-monsoon seasons in Sand content in the soil surface varied from 66.9% to 73.8% in Urwa block, 75.2% the study area is shown in [Table-2]. to 79.1%, in Meja block, 65.8% to 78.6% in Koraon block and 64.1% to 77.3% in the Manda block. The course texture of the soil control the variability of nutrient Pre-monsoon trend: storage capacity, limit the water holding capacity and roots may grow under sub- In pre-monsoon season at Tangakalan, Kheri, Lediyari, Garha, Ganjariya, Khajuri- optimal soil water due to water deficit. High deficit in soil moisture results in Ahiree, Simribagh, Basehra, Karpiya, Chailari and Latifpurin Koraon block; Itwa significant decrease in crop production under rain fed condition. As the study area Kalan, Datta Ka Purwa, Tendua, Kohrar Ghat, Madraha, Shahpur and Emiliya in was having very high sand content the water holding capacity of the soil was very Meja block; Nonwa in Manda block; and Urwa, Aunta, ShambhuPur, Shambhu poor, its irrigation water requirement was also very high, requiring more water per Chak and Balahan in Urwa block the water table had falling trend. Whereas at irrigation as well as more number of irrigation. As availability of canal water was Koraon and Panasa in Koraon block; Dasaunti in Meja block; Pandepur, Dohatha, limited, the overexploitation of groundwater was taking place, resulting in decline Desawar,Manda and Balaha in Manda block; and BagahainUrwa block the water of water table. table was neither having falling trend nor rising trend. Only at Paranipur in Urwa block the water table has rising trend. If we see block wise trend in Koraon block Increase in number of minor irrigation structures at 84.6% places it had falling trend and at 15.4% places it had neither rising nor Year wise variation in number of minor irrigation structures is shown in [Fig-7]. falling trend. In Meja block all the places were having only falling trend. In Manda Due to non availability of canal water in the desired quantity and at the desired

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4388 Alam M.A., Kumar Y., Sharma H.C., Ahsan Md Jafri, John Wesley C. and Singh Vikram

time groundwater pumpage was required, which was increasing every year. For indicated that there was about 87.81 percent increase in number of private wells this purpose number of minor irrigation structures increasing, resulting in and 57.15 percent in number of pumping sets during the study period of 20 years. overexploitation of ground water, ultimately lowering the water table. Study

Table-2 Trend of depth to water table during pre -monsoon and post-monsoon seasons in the study area in study period (1994-2013). Node Name of Block No. Depth to water table (m) ∑X^2 ∑XY ∑XY' Z* Z* Water table trend during interval No. Hydrograph of Years Pre- Mons. Post-Mons. Post- station (N) Pre-Mons. Pre-Mons. Post-Mons. ∑Y ∑XY Mons.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Neither rising 1 TangaKalan 20 87.24 54.47 2870 981.58 605.11 9.8586 4.9887 Falling nor falling 2 Kheri 20 114.33 65.67 2870 1291.75 775.91 13.7271 12.9887 Falling Falling 3 Lediyari 20 90.73 59.92 2870 1092.82 739.47 21.0759 16.5879 Falling Falling 4 Garha 20 132.93 82.4 2870 1431.36 934.92 5.3526 10.4842 Falling Falling 5 Ganjariya 20 114.71 62.02 2870 1326.33 737.78 18.3271 13.0180 Falling Falling 6 Khajuri-Ahiree 20 108.19 62.47 2870 1240.06 738.62 15.6489 12.4338 Falling Falling Korao Neither rising Neither rising 7 Koraon n 20 112.23 55.42 2870 1178.81 610.59 0.0599 4.312 8 nor falling nor falling

8 Simribagh 20 104.28 58.84 2870 1147.88 664.32 7.9609 6.9925 Falling Falling 9 Basehra 20 130.16 66.59 2870 1444.49 761.05 11.7007 9.3015 Falling Falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 10 Panasa 20 132.38 62.69 2870 1376.97 682.24 -1.957 9 3.6083 nor falling falling 11 Karpiya 20 93.53 58.75 2870 1112.36 719.91 19.5932 15.4939 Falling Falling 12 Chailari 20 91.07 58.73 2870 1083.3 723.57 19.1075 16.0759 Falling Falling 13 Latifpur 20 163.61 120.99 2870 1794.88 1359.88 11.5752 13.4564 Falling Falling 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Neither rising nor 14 Itwa Kala 20 89.73 54.16 2870 1006.77 589.25 9.7150 3.0932 Falling falling Neither rising nor 15 DattaKa Purwa 20 112.13 61.17 2870 1234.54 665.51 8.5977 3.4928 Falling falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 16 Dasaunti 20 91.57 55.15 2870 1026.53 583.71 9.7812 0.6969 Meja nor falling falling 17 Tendua 20 130.79 74.95 2870 1524.98 877.63 22.8098 13.6323 Falling Falling 18 KohrarGhat 20 177.63 113.67 2870 1992.59 1258.65 19.1692 9.7917 Falling Falling 19 Madraha 20 204.86 148.57 2870 2242.61 1631.48 13.7714 10.7511 Falling Falling 20 Shahpur 20 121.59 68.85 2870 1346.6 773.4 10.5120 7.5902 Falling Falling 21 Emiliya 20 112.44 65.32 2870 1333.67 781.03 23.0150 14.3113 Falling Falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 22 Pandepur 20 105.95 56.89 2870 1100.47 604.64 1.8052 1.0969 nor falling falling Neither rising 23 Dohatha 20 121.45 67.05 2870 1302.24 747.57 4.0624 6.5481 Falling nor falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 24 Desawar 20 128.98 69.02 2870 1370.89 744.31 2.4962 2.9474 Manda nor falling falling Neither rising 25 Manda 20 281.22 206.57 2870 2956.93 2220.71 0.6195 7.7782 Falling nor falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 26 Balaha 20 97.95 64.43 2870 1054.96 661.8 3.9827 2.212 8 nor falling falling 27 Nonwa 20 221.45 169.31 2870 2397.16 1933.45 10.8173 23.412 8 Falling Falling Neither rising nor 28 Aunta 20 237.30 170.82 2870 2525.18 1787.03 5.0421 0.9895 Falling falling 29 ShambhuPur 20 373.72 311.76 2870 4053.72 3432.63 19.4977 23.9323 Falling Falling 30 Shambhuchak 20 414.82 348.57 2870 4408.27 3729.69 7.9188 10.4819 Falling Falling Neither rising Neither rising nor 31 Bagaha 20 386.29 329.12 2870 4030.69 3437.91 3.812 8 2.6842 Urwa nor falling falling Neither rising nor 32 Balahan 20 260.34 207.61 2870 2821.88 2161.34 13.2797 2.7917 Falling falling Neither rising nor 33 Paranipur 20 177.51 143.72 2870 1827.96 1526.87 -5.3977 2.6782 Rising falling 34 Urwa 20 144.84 81.16 2870 1678.13 992.98 23.6556 21.1729 Falling Falling

Cropping pattern The cultivated area under wheat crop increased from 42290 ha to 57745 The major quantity of groundwater draft is being utilized by agricultural sector in indicating 26.76 % increase during the study period. Whereas, the area of the study area. The major crops grown in the study area were rice, wheat, pulses cultivation of rice crop and barely crop was found decreased from 104056 ha to and barely. On the other hand maize, oilseeds, sugarcane and vegetables were 42417 ha and 2050 ha to 1265 ha, respectively. Area under cultivation of also grown as minor crops. The study showed that the areas, under sorghum, vegetables, sugarcane and oilseed was not having definite trend. Besides this, maize and pulses were much less as compared to the areas covered by wheat, land under cultivation increased by 174863ha to 120089ha during the study period sugarcane and paddy. Thus, there has been an intensification of rice-wheat leading to overexploitation of groundwater. cropping system in the entire study area. The yearly variation in area occupied by these major and minor crops is shown in [Figs-8 and 9], respectively. It may be Increasing demand of groundwater for human and industrial consumption observed from [Fig-8] that rice and wheat crops occupied largest agricultural land During the study period (1994-2013) the human population in Bellan canal as compared to other crops which were generally being grown. command increased from 603772 during the year 1994 to 951420 during the year

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4389 Study of Groundwater Behaviour in the Bellan Canal Command in Allahabad District of Uttar Pradesh

2013, indicating about 36.54 percent increase in human population. This growth in population resulted in increased demand of groundwater for daily domestic use (cooking, drinking, bathing washing etc.). More over due to industrialization in the area during last 20 years the requirement of water for industrial uses has also increased leading to over-exploitation of ground.

Conclusions Study showed that water table in major part of the Bellan Canal Command was declining due to over-exploitation of groundwater. The soils of the area generally sandy loam, having higher sand content. This higher sand content requires more water for irrigation, resulting in over exploitation of groundwater. Farmers are growing more water requiring crops without considering land suitability and irrigability criteria, resulting in declining water table. This declining water table may result in less pump discharge, high pumping cost, and lesser availability of groundwater for further exploitation. Therefore, there is an urgent need for water Fig-6 Texture of surface soil, in different blocks of Bellan canal command. management planning so that the water table can be arrested at the desired level.

Acknowledgement / Funding : Author are thankful to Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Vaugh Institute of Engineering and Technology, Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Allahabad, 211007, U.P., India

Author Contributions: All author equally contributed

Conflict of Interest: None declared

References [1] Gleick (1996) A Gide For World Fresh Water Resources, U.S. Department Fig-7 Variation in number of minor irrigation structures in the study area. of the Geological Survey (Oxford University Press, New York) http://water.usgs.gov/edu/earthwherewater.html Last Modified:Friday, 07Aug2015 13:58:21. [2] Ministry of Water Resources, (2009) Report of the Ground Water resource Estimation Committee. Ministry of Water Resources, New Delhi. 133p. [3] Kaushal M.P., Khepar S.D. and Sondhi S.K. (1989) Groundwater resources of a canal command area at Barna command. In: Silver Jubilee Convention of I.S.A.E., Proceedings. Udaipur, January 5-7, pp.101-109. [4] Kumar C.P. and Seethapathi P.V. (2002) Journal of Applied Hydrology, Association of Hydrologists of India, 15 (4). 13-20. [5] Ambrish K. (2004) Groundwater recharge planning of Ganga-Ramganga interbasin using GIS. Thesis, Ph.D. G.B.P.U.A. & T., Pantnagar. [6] Sarkar R., Kumar S., Kumar Y. and Sharma H.C. (2006) Groundwater studies of Ramganga-Bahgulinter basin of Uttar Pradesh. In: National seminar on Hydrology with a Special Colloquium on Impact of Heavy Rainfall on Rural, Urban and Civic Facilities. 25th Annual convention of Association of Hydrologists, University of Madras, Chennai, India, August Fig-8 Variation in area occupied by major crop during study period. 24-25, 2006.

[7] Dillip K. Ghose, Sudhansu, S. Panda and Prakash C. Swain (2010) Journal of Hydrology, 394( 3–4), 296–304. [8] Kumar P. and Srinivas P. (2011) Irrigation and Drainage, 61(1),129-139. [9] Mane M.S., Singh D.K., Bhattacharya A.K. and Singh A.K. (2008) International Journal of Agricultural Engineering, 1(2),74-80. [10] W.R C11 India (2011) www.yourarticlelibrary.com/irrigation/canal-irrigation- india-with-map-an-pictures/21102/Canals Irrigation in India. 12/02/2016. [11] Brady N.C. and Weil R.R. (2008) The Nature and Properties of Soils. 13th Edn. Pearson Education, INC, 965 pp.

Fig-9 Variation in area occupied by minor crop during study period.

International Journal of Agriculture Sciences ISSN: 0975-3710&E-ISSN: 0975-9107, Volume 9, Issue 29, 2017 || Bioinfo Publications || 4390