Preventive Measures Under High Water Table Condition Of Command Area

Abstract

Agricultural land drainage in excess water condition is more useful and effectively functional when all the land holders up to the natural drains like nala or rivers agree to adopt it. This could have not been feasible due to lack of concept among land holders about drainage problems and community approach to solve the same. In such high water table condition certain preventive measures like vertical drainage and scientific management of irrigation as alternative option may help out. Under the study the rate of pumping and recuperation in drain well were observed 788.8 lit./min. and 75.22 lit./min. respectively along with specific yield of 0.078 in3 per hr. per nz3 of wetted area per m unit head. This extent of vertical drainage lowered down the water table by 8 to 15 cm depth in drain well at the time when water table in untrained well build up by 2 cm. As a result of vertical drainage sum of excess of water table above 100 SEW min field augerholes reduced to 428 cm from 1479 cm along with reduction in period in days from 76 days 24 days during which water table in field augerholes is within 100 an depth from field surface. Soil profile moisture storage also reduced by 5.56 cm/m and 3.76cm /m at the time of stopage and stall of canal operation respectively. Vertical drainage improve the yield of soybean (75-72-280) by 16- 25 % and wheat (lok-1) by 26.25% as compared to underained condition. The additional benefit cost ratio worked out to be 2.9 showing economic viability of vertical drainage as preventive measure. The adoption of Border strip irrigation @ 6cm gave considerably higher water use efficiently of 9.55 kg per ha. Inn! as compared to 4.77 kg per ha. mm in case of conventional flood method.