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Chandan:
I see Chandan Mahanta, a NRA, shouting in the
net and trying to make GOI accountable.
What we need is the people of Assam to hold both
GOA and GOI accountable for their lapses and not to let them go.
That is what Ram and I have been shouting for
in the net.
Are you willing to join us in trying to help people
of Assam do that?
That is why I asked you in my last mail, what point
you are trying to make by blaming the system.
We have 2 options.
We can shout and try to make point
or
We can try to help people of Assam.
I am for the later.
Rajen
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, March 03, 2005 7:26
AM
Subject: [Assam] Re: Credibility Of
MoWR!!!
For those who might be interested in holding their governments
accountable.
cm
At 12:14 AM +0600 3/3/05, D K Mishra wrote:
The data about irigation in different
states , as provided by MoWR are
fake and misleading. I can say this on
the authority of data supplied by
WRD of Govt. of Bihar. The annual
reports of GoB suggets that,
Major
irrigation projects in the
state (with command areas in excess of 10,000
hectares) include the Kosi
and Gandak in North Bihar, and the Sone canal
network in South Bihar.
There are a number of medium-sized schemes,
defined as those with
commands between 2,000 and 10,000 hectares, and
hundreds of minor
irrigation projects. However, as of 2003, irrigation
potential (area
connected to the irrigation network) was only 2.8
million hectares and
the area actually receiving water from the networks
was limited to 1.6
million hectares.
Scrutiny of records show that
both irrigation
potential and actual irrigation (area receiving water)
increased in the
state until 1990 when it attained its peak of 2.148
million hectares
after which actual irrigation saw a steady decline even
as potential
irrigation continued to rise. Between 1990 and 2000 (when
the state was
bifurcated into Bihar and Jharkhand), there was additional
potential
irrigation of 113,000 hectares but actual irrigation fell by
653,000
hectares. The area irrigated by surface networks has stabilized
around
1.6 million hectares for the past ten years. Considering that
404,000
hectares was under irrigation in Bihar at the time of
Independence in
August 1947, the increase in actual irrigation of 1.2
million acres over
the past 56 years is not a noteworthy achievement. At
that rate of
average
growth of actual irrigation, it will take about
230
years to achieve the irrigation targets and if we only consider
the
growth rate in the past 15 years of misrule in Bihar, the targets
would
never ever be achieved since the growth has been negative. One can
only
extrapolate as to when the irrigation department of the state
would
cease to function.
According to the water resources
department (Minor
Irrigation), irrigation potential of 222,000 hectares
had been created
by 2000 of which 84,800 hectares is through surface
irrigation schemes
and 132,200 hectares is by lift irrigation and
energized rural pump
sets. However, reports indicate that the surface
irrigation schemes have
not operated at more than 60 per cent efficiency
while the lift
irrigation schemes operate at a maximum efficiency of 10
per cent.
Ageing machines, erratic electricity supply, incompetent
management and
indifference of users are stated to be the causes of
underutilization of
these facilities.
There were a total of 2,316
Lift Irrigation
Schemes in the state of which 679 are defunct
because of electrical
problems, 104 do not function because of mechanical
problems, and 826
schemes suffer from a combination of both these
defects. Another 221
schemes have fallen into disuse because of the
shifting of the river
course away from the sump well or due to
sand-casting (intake covered by
sand). Thus, only 482 schemes, or less
that 21 per cent are
operational.
There are 5,558 State Tube Wells
(STW) in the state with
a command area of 307,000 hectares. Of these,
only 5,122 have received
electrical power. In the case of STWs, too, the
operation record is poor
- 2,886 sets are inoperative because of
electrical faults, 85 because of
mechanical trouble, and 302 because
of defects in the power supply
transformers. As a result, according to
the annual report of the Minor
Irrigation Dept, against a potential of
112,000 hectares, State Tube
Wells irrigated only 19,468 hectares of land
in 1999-2000.
Bihar (now
Jharkhand) Hill Area Lift Irrigation
Corporation (JHALCO) established in
1975 under Tribal Sub-Plan
commissioned 394 Lift Irrigation Schemes in
the tribal areas of
Jharkhand. According to reports, 284 of these
schemes are no longer functioning. Not
surprisingly, if the rains are
delayed by only a week the state faces
drought.
Actually, both the
data, whether it is given by Delhi or
by Patna are fake if the farmers
are to be believed. They do not trust
the irrigation establishment and
most of agriculture is based on their
own enerprize. The Irrigation
Department claims all the development to
its credit.
I am sure, the
situation in other states too, may not
be as rosy as presented to be.
There is a need to strengthen the
counter-research to blast the bogus
claims made by the irrigation
bureucracy.
Dinesh Mishra
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