Story link: http://www.goodnewsindia.com/index.php/Magazine/story/farm-ponds-baif
While check-dams have been the heroes of watershed development programmes everywhere, allocating a small area in each farm for a storage pond is truer to the spirit of rain water harvesting, namely 'catch the rain where it falls'. Check-dams are invariably down-river, down-in-the-valley structures where land is already quite productive and comparatively well served with water. Check-dams located there, trap the water which in fact fell on the higher catchment areas where the poor are. It is always the upper reaches in undulating terrains that are harder to farm and therefore left to the marginal people. In an effort to reverse and correct this inequity, BAIF Institute for Rural Development, Karnataka [BIRD-K] persuaded over 300 slope farmers to build small ponds. And that changed the water economy of a 700 hectare area in Hassan district in Karnataka. Don't be surprised, though. Wherever the long arm of Mr. Manibhai Desai reaches, efficiency, thoroughness and success invariably follow.
BAIF comes to Tiptur:
By 1980, the redoubtable Desai had arrived in Karnataka and formed BIRD-K. Its mission? Same as ever: 'show rural Indians, ways to sustainable incomes'. BAIF believes that for every local geography there is an integrated solution that is possible, sustainable and profitable. The mandate to its various centres is to find the one best suited to its location.
Tiptur in Hassan district was the entry point selected by Desai for Karnataka-- and with good reason. It is a drought prone area given to erratic rainfall that averages 500 to 700 mm annually. The topography is undulating, varying between 50 and 100 feet. At the lower levels, coconut is about the only crop. In the early days of tube well madness that swept the country, Tiptur too joined in. Rich farmers felt that all they needed was the money to drill a well and let in a pump. Ecological ignorance is a great leveller. The rich soon joined their humbler brethren up hill. Tube wells everywhere ran dry, the water table having gone down to 500 feet. People had lost their way, forgotten ancient, gentle practices and compounded their own problems. [Read about Idkidu, another village that went through --and recovered from-- the bore well disease in the boxed story at this link]
In 1984 Dr G N S Reddy arrived in Tiptur. He had graduated as a veterinarian and drawn by the Desai magic, had joined tens of his classmates to work for the BAIF mission. Quite early Reddy was struck by the tokenism of Government watershed programmes. It was a one-size-fits-all approach with check-dams, bunds and gully plugs etc reduced to a list of numbers. The programmes had no impact on water scarcity, soil run off, deepening of bore wells or migration of even the landed for jobs in the cities.
Amidst all this grimness, were the centuries old 'kalyanis', the dug out, stone lined ponds. There were quite a few of them in the area. They drained the last in the summer; often they survived the summer with some water left in them. They provided a clue. In Gujarat, BAIF had successfully pioneered the 'wadi' development model where small holders were led to sustained incomes by combining fruit trees with grain and vegetable farming on marginal lands, using little water. Why not combine the two at Tiptur?
A 'gunta' for a pond:
The objective was to benefit the poorer farmers in the upper reaches, by giving them dependable water resources. BIRD-K used all the modern techniques to map the geology, topography and existing water resources. Of greater importance was the social mapping. Using what they called 'participatory rural appraisal' they had a sociological profile of the place. 'But telemetric data is no substitute to walking all over the watershed area,' says Reddy. 'nor can a social survey replace patient discussions to answer participants' doubts and queries." The project was to cover a catchment area of 1000 hectares of which 750 ha were held by 330 families spread over 6 hamlets collectively forming the Adihalli - Mylanhalli village cluster. All these holdings had given up any serious farming. Over the years they had seen sharp rainfall over just a few days wash off all the top soil and enriching the valleys below.
By 1995 the BIRD-K master plan had been ably piloted by Dr N G Hegde -- who had succeeded Manibhai Desai at BAIF, Pune -- and gained funding support from India Canada Environment Facility: they would provide Rs.8000 per hectare to be spent almost entirely on labour costs. But convincing farmers to set aside a 'gunta' or 33' x 33' per two hectare of holding, was not easy. Although the farms were practically non-productive, the average farmer felt he was giving away something for no direct benefit to himself. It must also be remembered that such a large scale proposal was without precedent. There was nowhere the farmers could be taken to see the benefits of networked farm ponds. [The Manjunathapura experiment --see box-- was smaller and did not include networking of ponds] It's a tribute to the persuasive skills of Reddy and his team that in the end, all the 330 farmers in the project area joined.
When rain water falling on hilly areas is unrestrained, it flows along the slopes, gathereing velocity and top soil. Instead, if ponds located at the same elevation are connected by trenches, water racing is arrested and water is made to dwell and descend slowly down numerous vertical paths. This in simple terms is the technique but the benefits are in the details as we shall see.
Doing it:
Guntas set aside for farm ponds were in a lower corner of the farm. In it a pond of 30'x30'x10' was excavated. The ponds were strategically located along the same contour line and interconnected by channels cut along the same elevation. On an average there are about 15 ponds per contour. Soil from excavated channels was piled high along the lower edges forming a bund. On these bunds fruit and fodder trees were planted to reinforce the bund and to make them productive. Likewise the soil excavated from ponds was piled along the edges and planted with vegetables, herbs and useful shrubs. Farmers soon realised that the surface area on these mounds were nearly equal to the land 'lost' to the ponds.
Each pond has two connections with the contour channel. These are lined and act as silt traps. The farmer cleans these and the channels regularly to regain the soil washed down. At the end of the summer the pond is also dredged to recover nutrient rich soil. The contour lines eventually connect to a main drainage line which flows down the valley. This drain has many check-dams to further localise water harvesting.
Manjunathapura first:
The State from time to time allots land for Dalits in ceremonies redolent with media attention and speech-making. These allotments are however far from habitats and unwanted by anyone else because they are hard to farm. There is such a Dalit allotment in each of Karnataka's districts.
Manjunathapura near Tiptur is one such. 68 families had been allotted 100 ha on barren slopes of a hill. Water was available at 200 feet but there was no hope of getting any electricity. Even if it did come, the people were too poor to buy pumps. Since getting the land long ago, these families had lived about 3 kilometres away in a 'colony'. Though landed they were labourers travelling miles for work.
BIRD-K's renowned success in Adihalli-Mylanhalli, is in many ways founded on the experiments at Manjunathapura. Their work there began in 1992. They found a doughty champion in Rathnamma [picture above] and a willing worker in her husband Rame Gowda. Farm ponds, contour channels, wind breaks, biomass accumulation, fruit and fodder trees on bunds, diversified agriculture and animal husbandry were all sewn together.
What did they do for water in the first year? Its a delightfully unique Indian solution: a pack of 10 mules were trained to shuttle between the colony and the hill carrying water bags slung over their backs. These loyal lovelies had no pack driver but they sincerely ran many convoys in a day. Trees were thus hand watered and nursed.
Results began to show in the second year. Soil moisture and micro climate changes increased productivity. Rame Gowde and Rathnamma's holding became an oft quoted success story. Water table has risen. More and more families have begun to care for their holdings. Some have even moved home. Few go out looking for work. Their farms are productive enough. And finally, these risk taking poor people gave BIRD-K an opportunity to prove its theories and to gain confidence to scale its work to a larger canvas.
Where are those great Indians, the mules that built Manjunathapura? "Oh, they are in great demand. They have moved to another project site, ferrying water!"
And BIRD-K is flying powered by the success of Manjunathapura.
By 1997, all 330 ponds had been dug and connected. Farmers anxiously waited for the next rains. When it came and went, not much change was discernible. There were glum peasant faces all around. Yet the following year changes were dramatic. Soil moisture increased, water levels in the wells rose, water stayed longer in ponds and crop yields got better. What had happened between the first two years? A closer look at water mechanics will give us the answer. When water descends down a section that has been dry for several years, it first wets the grains along the porous path down which it flows. Most of the early charge is absorbed in this process. In subsequent years, the wetting process is completed and the voids begin to fill. As saturation is approached, water rises in wells. Down in the valley rivulets form and flow.
Starting 1998, all these have occurred in Adihalli-Mylanhalli. First the levels in dug out wells rose. And then in 2000, the barren bore wells that we saw earlier spouted like natural geysers, without need of any pumps. The sump in the valley is a vast lake now and has enough water right through the summer. It is estimated that 150 million litres of water is harvested every year. But increased water table is only the obvious effect. The side effects are dizzier.
Each pond has two connections with the contour channel. These are lined and act as silt traps. The farmer cleans these and the channels regularly to regain the soil washed down. At the end of the summer the pond is also dredged to recover nutrient rich soil. The contour lines eventually connect to a main drainage line which flows down the valley. This drain has many check-dams to further localise water harvesting.
Manjunathapura first:
The State from time to time allots land for Dalits in ceremonies redolent with media attention and speech-making. These allotments are however far from habitats and unwanted by anyone else because they are hard to farm. There is such a Dalit allotment in each of Karnataka's districts.
Manjunathapura near Tiptur is one such. 68 families had been allotted 100 ha on barren slopes of a hill. Water was available at 200 feet but there was no hope of getting any electricity. Even if it did come, the people were too poor to buy pumps. Since getting the land long ago, these families had lived about 3 kilometres away in a 'colony'. Though landed they were labourers travelling miles for work.
BIRD-K's renowned success in Adihalli-Mylanhalli, is in many ways founded on the experiments at Manjunathapura. Their work there began in 1992. They found a doughty champion in Rathnamma [picture above] and a willing worker in her husband Rame Gowda. Farm ponds, contour channels, wind breaks, biomass accumulation, fruit and fodder trees on bunds, diversified agriculture and animal husbandry were all sewn together.
What did they do for water in the first year? Its a delightfully unique Indian solution: a pack of 10 mules were trained to shuttle between the colony and the hill carrying water bags slung over their backs. These loyal lovelies had no pack driver but they sincerely ran many convoys in a day. Trees were thus hand watered and nursed.
Results began to show in the second year. Soil moisture and micro climate changes increased productivity. Rame Gowde and Rathnamma's holding became an oft quoted success story. Water table has risen. More and more families have begun to care for their holdings. Some have even moved home. Few go out looking for work. Their farms are productive enough. And finally, these risk taking poor people gave BIRD-K an opportunity to prove its theories and to gain confidence to scale its work to a larger canvas.
Where are those great Indians, the mules that built Manjunathapura? "Oh, they are in great demand. They have moved to another project site, ferrying water!"
And BIRD-K is flying powered by the success of Manjunathapura.
By 1997, all 330 ponds had been dug and connected. Farmers anxiously waited for the next rains. When it came and went, not much change was discernible. There were glum peasant faces all around. Yet the following year changes were dramatic. Soil moisture increased, water levels in the wells rose, water stayed longer in ponds and crop yields got better. What had happened between the first two years? A closer look at water mechanics will give us the answer. When water descends down a section that has been dry for several years, it first wets the grains along the porous path down which it flows. Most of the early charge is absorbed in this process. In subsequent years, the wetting process is completed and the voids begin to fill. As saturation is approached, water rises in wells. Down in the valley rivulets form and flow.
Starting 1998, all these have occurred in Adihalli-Mylanhalli. First the levels in dug out wells rose. And then in 2000, the barren bore wells that we saw earlier spouted like natural geysers, without need of any pumps. The sump in the valley is a vast lake now and has enough water right through the summer. It is estimated that 150 million litres of water is harvested every year. But increased water table is only the obvious effect. The side effects are dizzier.
After effects:
Farm productivity rose. But why? Water stagnation in ponds and channels increased sub-soil mositure. Slow evaporation over long periods of the year changed the micro climate and increased soil animal population. This attracted birds with their own cross fertlisation and seed delivery processes. This brought vigorous undergrowth. Trees grew steadily and shaded the land. Farms retained top soil. Assured of water resources, farmers stayed longer on their holdings. Some have even moved in and made homes. Fodder availability encouraged animal husbandry and that brought in synergistic animal-soil interaction. Farmers living on land are more observant of fine details and shape and mould their land continually.
The food basket is more varied with fruits and vegetables on the table. Many ponds are small fisheries. Income streams are more numerous and with small money surpluses, farmers --as always with all Indians-- have turned to giving their children quality education. Management of schools, health centres, the watershed and community interests invite wide participation.Women have formed themselves into self help groups and run micro credit schemes. The striking impression is that even given that India is ever-smiling, Adihalli-Mylanhalli valley has a high smile-index.
Underlying all this change is the subtlest of all reasons. "Farm ponds are democratic and decentralised," says Reddy. "check-dams are monolithic and autocratic." Also check-dam maintenance calls for community partipation which is good when it happens, but harder to coordinate. Farm ponds and channels are constantly cared for by the owner. Farmers discover a greater sense of control and destiny when they see water standing in their own patch. Water from check-dams if it ever comes to the upper reaches is after all 'piped' water. Water on the land, --with fishes, frogs, dragon-flies and birds-- creates a pond ecology and makes the farmer connect with his inner self. When that happens he excels.
Therefore, BIRD-K's greatest success are the people it has created. There are today about 800 locals who are farm pond experts. Bus loads of curious visitors, NGO personnel and eager farmers arrive every year at Adihalli-Mylanhalli. They receive ready exposition of all matters involved. But perhaps, none can match a barely literate, colourful character who farms a small patch in the valley, they call 'Campaign' Thimmaiah. He is a member of the watershed committee that makes the rules. One of them for instance, is that no one may use a powered device to pump water from the drainage lake in the valley. Thimmaiah polices the lake and is everywhere in the watershed busying himself and preaching the virtues of farm ponds to anyone who cares to listen -- or even doesn't. BIRD-K uses him as a mascot and a living testimonial. It is people like him --who have sprung up from the soil-- that truly matter for a transforming India. They share their time, knowledge and enthusiasm. It is comforting that people like 'Campaign' Thimmaiah ignore the doomsdayers and over-educated Cassandras. They are too busy helping people solving problems.
___
BAIF Institute for Rural Development - Karnataka [BIRD-K]
Post Box 3,
Sharadanagara,
Tiptur 572 202
Karnataka
Phone - [08134] 250659, 251337
email:
July,2003