TRADITIONAL WATER HARVESTING SYSTEM TECHNIQUES

Presented by:Biplojit Ray,MSc.Dept. of Eco & Env Sc.

INTRODUCTION

• Water is essential for the existence & survival of any life form.

• India has a tradition of water harvesting that is as much as four to five millennia old. Water has been harvested in India since antiquity.

• The nature of Indian ecology forced Indians to develop the art of water harvesting.

• Though the nation gets a high amount of rainfall as much as 1,100 mm/yr. this rainfall is not evenly spread across the year.

HISTORY OF WATER HARVESTING IN INDIA

• Evidences of the existence of advanced water harvesting systems can be found from pre historic times.

• Evidence of this tradition can be found in ancient texts, inscriptions, local traditions & archaeological remains.

• Dholavira, a major site of the Indus Valley Civilization dating back to the third millennium before Christ and situated in the extremely dry region of the Great Rann of Kutch had several reservoirs to collect rain water run-off.

• There is also evidence of irrigation based on harvested rainwater in Kautilya's 'Arthashastra'. Written in the 3rd century B.C., the book indicates that the people knew about the rainfall regimes, soil types, and irrigation techniques. It also mentions that the state rendered help in construction of irrigation works initiated and managed by the inhabitants of newly settled villages. Members of the community who did not participate in the activities of water management were punished.

Gond Traditions: The tribal Gond kings were great empire builders. Though the Gonds had a strong central government, each village was independent in its economy and governance. Building of reservoirs for irrigation was the foremost duty of the village chief. The prosperity of the kingdom rested on proper management of land and water resources. Repairs of channels, embankments and distributaries were immediately taken up after the first rainfall. The great works like the Rani Talab near Jabalpur remain to this day a monument of their rule.

Bengal Traditions: An overflow irrigation system functioned till the 17th century where flood waters were used for irrigation and the silt in the floodwater to enrich the soil and the fish in the floodwaters to control malaria. In the 1920s, the British irrigation expert, Sir William Willcocks was asked to help out the famine prone Bengal. He noted that, the best that the government could do was to revive the ancient flood irrigation system there.

TRADITONAL WATER HARVESTING SYSTEMS IN DIFFERENT REGIONS OF INDIA

• Trans-Himalayan Region – Zing

• Western Himalaya – Kul – Naula – Kuhl – Khatri

• Eastern Himalaya – Apatani

• Northeastern Hill Ranges – Zabo – Cheo-oziihi – Bamboo drip irrigation

• Brahmaputra valley – Dongs – Dungs/jampois

• Indo-Gangetic Plains – Ahars-pynes – Bengal's Inundation channels – Dighis

• Thar Desert – Kunds/kundis – Kuis/beris – Baoris/bers – Jhalaras – Nadi

– Tobas – Tankas – Khadins – Vav/Vavdi/Baoli/Bavadi – Virdas – Paar

• Central Highlands – Talab/Bandhis – Saza Kuva – Johads – Naada/bandh – Pat – Rapat – Chandela tank – Bundela tank

• Eastern highlands – Katas/Mundas/Bandhas

• Deccan Plateau – Cheruvu – Kohli tanks – Bhandaras – Phad – Kere – The Ramtek Model

• Western Ghats – Surangam

• Western coastal plains – Virdas

• Eastern Ghats – Korambu

• Eastern Coastal Plains – Eri – Ooranis

• The Islands – JackWells

KUHLS:

• Kuhls are a traditional irrigation system in Himachal Pradesh. • A typical community Kuhl services 6 to 30 farmers irrigating an area of about 20 ha.• The system consists of a temporary head well across a khud for storage & diversion of the flow through a canal to the fields.• The kuhl is provided with moghas to draw out water & irrigate near by terraced fields.• The kuhls were constructed & maintained by the village community.

BENGAL’S INUNDATION CHANNELS:

• Inundation channels were made to withdraw flood water from the fields.• Flood water entering the fields through the inundation canals, carries not only rich silt but also fish, which swam through these canals into the lakes & tanks to feed on larva of mosquitoes.• Thus help to check malaria in this region.• However during Afghan Maratha war in the 18th century & the subsequent British conquest of India. This irrigation system was neglected..

KATAS/MUNDAS/BANDHAS:

The Katas/Mundas/Bandhas were the main irrigation sources in the ancient tribal kingdom of Gonds (now in Orissa & M.P)

A kata is constructed North to South, or East to West, of a village. A strong earthen embankment, curved at either end, is built across a drainage line to hold up an irregularly shaped sheet of water.

THE RAMTEK MODEL:

• The Ramtek model has been named after water harvesting structures in the town of Ramtek, Maharastra.• A fully evolved system, harvesting runoff through tanks, supported by high yielding wells & structure like Baories, Kundis etc.• These systems are constructed & maintained mostly by Malguzars (landowners).

SURANGAM:

• Surangams are special water harvesting structures found in the northern Malabar region of Kerala.• The word Surangam is derived from a Kannada word for tunnel.• A Surangam is about 0.45-0.70 m wide & about 1.8-2.0 m high.• The length varies from 3-300 m, provided with vertical air shafts to ensure atmospheric pressure.• The distance between successive air shafts varies from 50-60 m.

KORAMBU:

Korumbu is a temporary dam streching across the mouth of channels, made of brushwood, mud & grass. This system of traditional water harvesting system is commonly found in the Eastern Ghats.

• It is constructed horizontally fixing a strong wooden beam touching either banks of the canal.• Korambu is constructed to raise the water level in the canal & to divert the water into field channels.• They are built twice a year especially before the onset of monsoon season in order to supply water during winter & summer season.

TRADITONAL WATER HARVESTING SYSTEMS IN NORTHEAST INDIA

• Northeastern part of India consists of seven states.

• The water potential of the region is the largest in the entire country.

• Maximum scope for ground water & available surface water resources.

• Cultivation in the region is largely rain fed & Jhum cultivation has been widely adopted.

BAMBOO DRIP IRRIGATION:

• This system of water management is based on the principle of Gravity flow which has been fully exploited by the tribal farmers.• Water is carried with the help of different forms of bamboo pipes.• The special feature of the whole system is to convey the water to the site of actual use without leakage & loss on the way.• The flow of water thus carried, can be efficiently controlled as per requirement.

This system is mainly followed in Jaintia & Khasi hills of Meghalaya.

APATANI SYSTEM OF RICE CUM FISH CULTURE:

This system is practiced by Apatani tribes of Ziro in lower subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh.

• The striking features are partially flooded rice fields & the intricate design of the contour dams dividing the plots.• The plots are divided by about half a meter high earthen dams supported by bamboo frames.• All holdings are provided with inlet & outlets at the opposite sides, the inlets for the low lying plots acts as outlets for the higher level plots.• The fields can be flooded or drained by opening or closing the conducting ducts.

ZABO SYSTEM:

The zabo(impounding runoff) system is practiced in Nagaland in north east India. It is also known as Ruza system.

• Though the area receives high rainfall, the drinking water is a major problem in the region.• Zabo system combines water conservation with forestry, agriculture & animal care.• The run off water flows along the slopes passing through various terraces.• The water is collected in a pond like structures in the middle terraces, below the cattle yards & towards the foot of the hills, where the run off ultimately meanders into.

CHEO-OZIHI:

• This traditional harvesting system is locatedon the banks of river Meizii, kwigema village inNagaland.• The river water is brought down by a longChannel(8-10km long), from which many branchchannels are taken off & water is often divertedto the terraces through bamboo pipes.• The system is mainly utilized for irrigating cropFields.

BAMBOO PIPES FOR RAIN WATER HARVESTING:

It is one of the most common technique found in all most all north eastern states.

• Natural materials such as bamboo are commonly used for collecting rain water from roof tops.• The rain water is transported to a storage tank through bamboo pipes leading from the roof.

PANI-KHETI:

• A very popular tradition of judicious utilization of water or water conservation.• This system is commonly found on terraces developed by Agami & Chakesangs tribes of Nagaland.• In this system of farming, water is supplied to plants by channels that carry water from streams.

CONCLUSION

The water resource is a most important issue today. It is very important to improve & maintain the water harvesting techniques in order to conserve the natural resources for better environment & benefit of people in the region as well as in the country.

REFERENCE

• Agarwal A. & Narain S., Dying Wisdom: Rise, fall & potential of India’s Traditional Water Harvesting Systems( centre for science & env., 1997)

• Borthakur S., India Journal of Traditional Knowledge, vol 8(4), oct 2009. pp 525- 530.

• http://www.rainwaterharvesting.org