Karnataka - Gulbarga   

For this farmer, every drop counts

T.V. Sivanandan

A MODEL WATER CONSERVATION: The vineyard of Rajeshekar Gaddad in Madanhipparga in Aland taluk of Gulbarga district.

GULBARGA: A progressive farmer in the drought-prone Aland taluk in Gulbarga district has adopted the innovative Maharashtra model of growing grapes on his 2.5-acre agricultural plot using very little water.

Rajasekhar Gaddad, a small farmer from Madanahipparga village in Aland taluk, has adopted for the first time, at least in Hyderabad-Karnataka region, the innovative "defuser" method of irrigation for the grape crop in his land through drip irrigation.

If the drip irrigation was a water-saving technology, the defuser method improves the system and prevents the water from going waste and ensures that only the required quantum of water is supplied to the crop for its orderly growth.

Water shortage

A happy looking Mr. Gadad told a group of presspersons visiting his field that a few years ago he was growing vegetables and grapes in plenty, but for the past four years he had not been in a position to grow even conventional crops like red gram in his field after the open well dried up and his attempts to drill the borewells failed.

His chance visit to a friend's farm at Akkalkot in Maharashtra was an eye-opener to him.

The successful water conservation technique adopted by Maharashtra farmers using the defuser concept impressed him and he adopted it in his farm two years ago.

Earthen pots

Mr. Gaddad said under the system, reinforced earthen pots with a few holes in them were placed between two plants in the agriculture field and water was let into the pots through drip irrigation once a day. The water that seeped through the holes in the earthen pot not only made the soil retain the moisture always, but also ensured that the roots of the crop were drawn towards the spot where the water was available.

Impressive result

He said the supply of adequate water helped in the healthy growth of the plant and prevented wastage. Under the conventional drip irrigation, grapes required about 20,000 litres of water a day per acre. But under the "defuser" method, release of 6,000 litres of water a day per acre was enough to reap a rich harvest.

Even now, the open well in his agricultural field was dry because of depletion of water table.

Mr. Gaddad had drilled a borewell in the open well, which fetched water for about 20 to 30 minutes a day and that was enough for him to irrigate his crops using the defuser method.

On an average, he operated the irrigation pumpset for about 20 minutes a day and that was sufficient to provide the required quantity of 15,000 litres a day to his grape crops in 2.5-acre plot.

Initial investment

Aland MLA B.R. Patil appreciating the initiative taken by Mr. Gaddad, wanted farmers in the water-starved areas of the region to adopt the technique and get out of the water crisis.

Mr. Gaddad said the initial investment for the system was about Rs. 40,000 but the returns were much more than the investment. Besides reducing the power bill drastically, he was able cut down the cost of cultivation.

Mr. Patil said Prakash Patil of Savalaz in Sangli in Maharashtra was the pioneer of the defuser method, which he developed in 2002.

Experiment successful

The method was successfully experimented in 1,000 acres of land growing the horticulture crops like grapes and pomegranate. Savalaz and other neighbouring villages experienced one of the worst ever d rought in 2002 and severe fall in the groundwater levels.

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