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<p><strong><span>THE DRUDGERY</span></strong></p><p>A primary reason why agriculture remains a challenging sector in India is the unc&shy;er&shy;tainty over water. In most areas where water is available, poor management negates any pot&shy;ential gains. Farming in India is by the flood irrigation method, where water is released to flow freely in the entire farm, or manually watered. Experts say only 50 per cent of the water is used by the crop, the rest is wasted due to runoff, evaporation or percolation into the soil.</p><p>The dominant source of water for irrigation in the country is groundwater from tubewells (45 per cent), followed by water from the rivers and their tributaries through canal irrigation method (26 per cent). In both cases, wastage is high, not to mention the electricity cost of drawing water from under the ground. The unpredictable weather has only compounded agriculture woes, making it a high-risk occupation in India today. Groundwater-based irrigation is also detrimental to the environment as it pushes down the water tables.</p><div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="aa4f6daf-6417-414b-b3d1-2275be60f08e" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F15-republic-day-irrigation-pdmc-feb3.jpg%3FVersionId%3D0BS1YgHxopX2HA8IXPZEl1ARDmcO87k7%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" alt="" height="545" width="770" class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" layout="responsive"></amp-img>


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</div><hr></p><p><strong><span>THE EASE OF LIVING</span></strong></p><div class="itemcenter"><amp-iframe height="62" title="" width="320" sandbox="allow-forms allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-top-navigation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" allowfullscreen src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014%5Cu0026native%3D1" class="mrBt15 preferred-source-banner"> </amp-iframe></div></p><p>The centrally-sponsored scheme on micro-irrigation was first launched in January 2006 but it was only in April 2015—when it was subsumed under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) and states were given targets—that it actually started picking up. In July 2015, it was rechristened PMKSY: Per Drop More Crop (PDMC), by the department of agriculture and farmers&rsquo; welfare.</p><p>As part of the scheme, the government underwrites between 45 per cent and 55 per cent of the initial cost of installing micro-irrigation systems such as drips and sprinklers on farms, automatically reducing water usage by 50 per cent. Add state government incentives and the subsidy goes up to 70 per cent. The average cost of setting up a micro irrigation system is around Rs 50,000 per acre.</p><div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="4dde8434-bed3-40de-a48a-099d1f57afcd" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F15-republic-day-irrigation-pdmc.jpg%3FVersionId%3DIg_p6Fx1cdQxmloVtEKrI_FJhvsXzHZM%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" alt="" height="593" width="770" class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" layout="responsive"></amp-img>


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</div></p><p>To address the primary concern of water availability at source, PDMC also helps in creating micro-level water storage by harnessing rainwater, efficient water conveyance, and topping up of input cost for water lifting devices. At the village level, the government underwrites up to 60 per cent of the expense of creating alternative micro-level local water storages, typically a village pond.</p><p>The biggest gain from the PDMC is the reduced dependence of the farmer on weather conditions—and hence the uncertainty associated with farming—leading to better planning, more diversity of crops, better soil health, higher acreage and, in the end, higher profitability. The drip irr&shy;igation system also comes in useful for administering fertiliser. This has reduced labour costs, one of the highest components in farming, to less than half. </p><hr></p><p><span><strong>HOW IT TRANSFORMED MY LIFE</strong></span></p><p><em><strong>&ldquo;Now we grow crops at a quarter of the cost,&rdquo; </strong>says Lalit Patel, 58, Navanagar village, Sabarkantha, Gujarat</em></p><figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-entity">
<div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="d6d14b6e-e0f7-47e8-9c38-9f32c1baa575" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F-irrigation.jpg%3FVersionId%3DRH_Ggk8PO2LnrMZV1afbBlEclMZ6B_Bd%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" alt="" height="479" width="770" class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" layout="responsive"></amp-img>


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<figcaption>Lalit Patel, 58, Navanagar village, Sabarkantha, Gujarat</figcaption>
</figure></p><p>Till 15 years back, Lalit Patel would harvest just one crop of cotton a year. Prudent water manag&shy;e&shy;ment, and the state&rsquo;s Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme have meant he can now harvest up to three diverse crops. His income has gone up from Rs 25,000 per hectare a season to Rs 1.25 lakh per hectare.</p><p>The Gujarat government first introduced the micro-irrigation scheme in 2005 and Patel was among the first farmers to sign up and have drip irrigation and sprinkler systems installed on his 15-acre farm. By 2010, every farm in the village of 100-odd households, with some 460 hectares between them, had switched to the micro-irrigation systems. &ldquo;Now, after harvesting the cotton crop in October-November, we grow musk melon for the three months of winter. After that, we switch to either vegetables like cauliflower, tomato, brinjal, potato, or go for peanuts, saunf (fennel) or castor,&rdquo; he says.</p><p>Patel&rsquo;s fortunes have taken a turn for the better not only because he can harvest more, but also because his expenses per acre have reduced to a fourth. &ldquo;The water table was depleting so rapidly that it was available only after 550 feet. We spent up to Rs 17,000 per month on electricity. Now, we use a 5 HP motor for sprinkler and drip irrigation systems, and the cost is just Rs 2,000 per month,&rdquo; says Patel.</p><p>The benefits stretch much beyond that now. Aro&shy;und 300 farmers in Navanagar have formed a water cooperative, another for seed and fertiliser as well as a farmer producer organisation (FPO) through which they are directly in touch with commodity traders, which helps them evade the middlemen and maximise profit. </p><div id="lrcmtcont"></div><div class="end_story">- Ends</div><div class="dottedimg"></div><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Shyam Balasubramanian</div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Jan 24, 2025</div></div></div>

cover-story

Cover Story

75 Years of the Republic

<p><strong><span style="color:#c0392b;">THE DRUDGERY</span></strong></p><p>A primary reason why agriculture remains a challenging sector in India is the unc&shy;er&shy;tainty over water. In most areas where water is available, poor management negates any pot&shy;ential gains. Farming in India is by the flood irrigation method, where water is released to flow freely in the entire farm, or manually watered. Experts say only 50 per cent of the water is used by the crop, the rest is wasted due to runoff, evaporation or percolation into the soil.</p><p>The dominant source of water for irrigation in the country is groundwater from tubewells (45 per cent), followed by water from the rivers and their tributaries through canal irrigation method (26 per cent). In both cases, wastage is high, not to mention the electricity cost of drawing water from under the ground. The unpredictable weather has only compounded agriculture woes, making it a high-risk occupation in India today. Groundwater-based irrigation is also detrimental to the environment as it pushes down the water tables.</p><div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="aa4f6daf-6417-414b-b3d1-2275be60f08e" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <div class="itgimage"><img  height="545"  title=""  width="770"  class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F15-republic-day-irrigation-pdmc-feb3.jpg%3FVersionId%3D0BS1YgHxopX2HA8IXPZEl1ARDmcO87k7%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" loading="lazy" /></div>


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</div><hr></p><p><strong><span style="color:#c0392b;">THE EASE OF LIVING</span></strong></p><div class="itemcenter"><iframe scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="62" awidth="320" aheight="62" amplayout="fixed" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014" class="preferred-source-banner" loading="lazy"></iframe></div><style>.preferred-source-banner{  margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}</style></p><p>The centrally-sponsored scheme on micro-irrigation was first launched in January 2006 but it was only in April 2015—when it was subsumed under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) and states were given targets—that it actually started picking up. In July 2015, it was rechristened PMKSY: Per Drop More Crop (PDMC), by the department of agriculture and farmers&rsquo; welfare.</p><p>As part of the scheme, the government underwrites between 45 per cent and 55 per cent of the initial cost of installing micro-irrigation systems such as drips and sprinklers on farms, automatically reducing water usage by 50 per cent. Add state government incentives and the subsidy goes up to 70 per cent. The average cost of setting up a micro irrigation system is around Rs 50,000 per acre.</p><div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="4dde8434-bed3-40de-a48a-099d1f57afcd" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <div class="itgimage"><img  height="593"  title=""  width="770"  class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F15-republic-day-irrigation-pdmc.jpg%3FVersionId%3DIg_p6Fx1cdQxmloVtEKrI_FJhvsXzHZM%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" loading="lazy" /></div>


</div>
      
  </article>
</div></p><p>To address the primary concern of water availability at source, PDMC also helps in creating micro-level water storage by harnessing rainwater, efficient water conveyance, and topping up of input cost for water lifting devices. At the village level, the government underwrites up to 60 per cent of the expense of creating alternative micro-level local water storages, typically a village pond.</p><p>The biggest gain from the PDMC is the reduced dependence of the farmer on weather conditions—and hence the uncertainty associated with farming—leading to better planning, more diversity of crops, better soil health, higher acreage and, in the end, higher profitability. The drip irr&shy;igation system also comes in useful for administering fertiliser. This has reduced labour costs, one of the highest components in farming, to less than half. </p><hr></p><p><span style="color:#c0392b;"><strong>HOW IT TRANSFORMED MY LIFE</strong></span></p><p><em><strong>&ldquo;Now we grow crops at a quarter of the cost,&rdquo; </strong>says Lalit Patel, 58, Navanagar village, Sabarkantha, Gujarat</em></p><figure role="group" class="caption caption-drupal-entity">
<div data-embed-button="ckeditor_image" data-entity-embed-display="view_mode:media.image" data-entity-type="media" data-entity-uuid="d6d14b6e-e0f7-47e8-9c38-9f32c1baa575" data-langcode="en" class="embedded-entity"><article class="media media--type-ckeditor-image media--view-mode-image">
  
      
            <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item">  <div class="itgimage"><img  height="479"  title=""  width="770"  class="image-style-medium-crop-simple" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Findiatoday%2Fstyles%2Fmedium_crop_simple%2Fpublic%2F2025-01%2F-irrigation.jpg%3FVersionId%3DRH_Ggk8PO2LnrMZV1afbBlEclMZ6B_Bd%5Cu0026size%3D750:*" loading="lazy" /></div>


</div>
      
  </article>
</div>

<figcaption>Lalit Patel, 58, Navanagar village, Sabarkantha, Gujarat</figcaption>
</figure></p><p>Till 15 years back, Lalit Patel would harvest just one crop of cotton a year. Prudent water manag&shy;e&shy;ment, and the state&rsquo;s Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme have meant he can now harvest up to three diverse crops. His income has gone up from Rs 25,000 per hectare a season to Rs 1.25 lakh per hectare.</p><p>The Gujarat government first introduced the micro-irrigation scheme in 2005 and Patel was among the first farmers to sign up and have drip irrigation and sprinkler systems installed on his 15-acre farm. By 2010, every farm in the village of 100-odd households, with some 460 hectares between them, had switched to the micro-irrigation systems. &ldquo;Now, after harvesting the cotton crop in October-November, we grow musk melon for the three months of winter. After that, we switch to either vegetables like cauliflower, tomato, brinjal, potato, or go for peanuts, saunf (fennel) or castor,&rdquo; he says.</p><p>Patel&rsquo;s fortunes have taken a turn for the better not only because he can harvest more, but also because his expenses per acre have reduced to a fourth. &ldquo;The water table was depleting so rapidly that it was available only after 550 feet. We spent up to Rs 17,000 per month on electricity. Now, we use a 5 HP motor for sprinkler and drip irrigation systems, and the cost is just Rs 2,000 per month,&rdquo; says Patel.</p><p>The benefits stretch much beyond that now. Aro&shy;und 300 farmers in Navanagar have formed a water cooperative, another for seed and fertiliser as well as a farmer producer organisation (FPO) through which they are directly in touch with commodity traders, which helps them evade the middlemen and maximise profit. </p><div id="lrcmtcont"></div><div class="end_story">- Ends</div><div class="dottedimg"></div><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Shyam Balasubramanian</div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Jan 24, 2025</div></div></div>

With India becoming a water-stressed nation, the drip irrigation drive has brought rich dividends to farmers, enhancing yields and earnings

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Farmers | Every drop counts

With India becoming a water-stressed nation, the drip irrigation drive has brought rich dividends to farmers, enhancing yields and earnings

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