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dam-l LS: NBA PR: Drought Calls for Decentralized Water Solutions



NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN

B-13, Shivam Flats, Ellora Park, Baroda-390007 ( Pune contact: 
Sadhana-5656763, Suhas-5382782)

Press Note/ May 29,2000

GUJARAT DROUGHT CALLS FOR DECENTRALISED WATER SOLUTIONS, NOT SSP

The current drought situation in the Saurashtra and Kutch regions has 
once again underlined the need for a long term and decentralised 
water management in Gujarat. It has also brought out the miserable 
failure of the Gujarat government to address the real issues, which 
have been pointed by number of experts and social activists for 
years. Instead, the Gujarat government is trying to use the drought 
for creating a hysteria in support of the controversial Sardar 
Sarovar Project (SSP), which will not solve the problem of drought 
and destitution. The powerholders are trying to wriggle out of their 
responsibility by unwarrantedly targetting the Narmada Bachao 
Andolan. If the state government is serious to have a real solution 
for the drought, it will have to stop its obsession with the SSP and 
divert the funds towards decentralised and sustainable water 
management.

There are number of well-substantiated reasons why the SSP cannot be 
a real solution for the drought in Gujarat, even if it is built. It 
is not at all for 98% of Kutch, for Jamnagar, Amreli, Junagadh 
districts and majority of Rajkot, Bhavnagar and Surendranagar 
districts. Even if the dam work would have proceeded, only 1.6% and 
9.24% of the total cultivable lands of drought affected Kutch and 
Saurashtra would have seen the canals, that too in 2025 and 2020 
respectively. The Kutch is provided with barely 2% of the water of 
the Sardar Sarovar Project. There are number of claimants in for the 
water before even this miniscule amount of water would reach to the 
drought affected regions. The incoming sugar factories, the water 
schemes by the metros like Baroda and Ahmedabad and the 'water 
marketing' for the industries through the Sardar Sarovar canals, all 
have been a political reality, which cannot be wished off. Gujarat 
government has floated the concept of water marketing of the Narmada 
waters, where the needy regions cannot figure in.

The estimate of water availability in Narmada has been 22 million 
acre foot (MAF), rather than earlier estimates of 28 MAF. The 
irrigation efficiency presumed by our bureaucrats was 60%, which has 
been unheard of and not possible. The India Irrigation review (1991) 
of the World Bank and the report of the tenth Estimates Committee of 
Gujarat Legislature make it amply clear that average irrigation 
efficiency in India and Gujarat has been 45-50%. In the 'Project 
Completion report' (1995), the Bank predicted the untenability of the 
claims of benefits and estimated that about 20% of the command area 
would have to be curtailed. This obviously means the tail-ends - 
Kutch and Saurashtra.

However, the major chunk of the irrigation and overall budget in 
Gujarat has been frittered away on this project. In the Eighth Five 
Year Plan of the state (1992-97), allocation for Gujarat's irrigation 
budget was Rs. 3436 crores, out of which allocation for SSP was Rs. 
2900 crores, which comes to 85% of irrigation budget. Actual 
Expenditure during this Plan was: total on Irrigation sector: Rs. 
4810.41 crores, and on SSP: Rs. 4204.2 crores, that is 87.4% of total 
irrigation budget. Gujarat's Total (and not just irrigation budget 
mentioned above) budget for 2000-2001 is Rs. 7300 crores, out which 
allocation for SSP is Rs. 3730 crores, almost 50%. For the Ninth Five 
Year Plan (1997-2002), the allocation for Gujarat's irrigation budget 
is Rs. 14385.65 crores, out of which allocation for SSP is: Rs. 
14000.00 crores, that is 97.3% of state irrigation budget. The cost 
of SSP, as per latest estimate from Ministry of Water Resources, is 
Rs. 22176.95 crores.

On the other hand hundreds of the decentralised water schemes of 
Saurashtra are pending due to the paucity of funds. The blind 
insistence on the SSP will cost the Kutch and Saurashtra very dearly.

The Real Solutions

The real, long term solution lies in a decentralised water 
conservation network along with the optimum utilisation of the 
available rainwater and groundwater in the drought affected regions. 
Imperative measures for groundwater recharge include restriction on 
its excess extraction for cash crops and "Green Revolution" style 
agriculture. As Ashwin Shah, the US based Indian expert on the water 
management in Gujarat puts it, the rainfall and the needs of the 
water in Gujarat are fairly decentralised, therefore the water 
management too should be decentralised. The state government itself 
has district-wise plans. The people themselves point out that 
decentralised solutions that might yield benefits much earlier and 
more cheaply than the elusive Narmada Project. The much sought after 
example of Rajsamadhiala village amidst the 'drought' in Rajkot 
district, is an eye-opener. A number of such experiments by NGOs in 
Gujarat have been successfully carried out for decentralised and 
sustainable practices like watershed development and groundwater 
recharging. The work of Mahiti-Utthan (Dholka, Surendranagar), 
Agakhan Rural Support Programme (Junagadh and Surendranagar), 
Lokbharati (Sanosasra), Society for Promotion of the Wasteland 
Development (Bhavnagar), Vivekanand Research and Training Institute, 
and Jan Vikas (Kutch) are all pointers for real and lasting solutions 
in the hands of the people.

 From the summer of 1995, Saurashtra Lok Manch, along with the 
disciples of Swadhyay Parivar, and other organisations have initiated 
a campaign for well recharging in Saurashtra on large scale. 
According to Shyamjibhai Antala of the Manch, Saurashtra has 7,00,000 
wells spread all over its territory. The recharging of even 2 lakhs 
wells would bring up the groundwater level throughout Saurashtra. The 
campaign has been able to recharge thousands of wells during 1995-98. 
The endeavour involves no big budget, no bureaucratic and unwieldy 
planning. It is in the hands of peasants, can be implemented speedily 
without complicated technology, and cheaply with early results. From 
the veteran Venishankar Vasu in early 1980s to Ahwin Shah and 
Shaymaji Antala in 1990s, there were number of plans, suggestions, 
analyses for decentralised water management.

The state government has not taken the watershed development and sea 
ingress prevention works seriously. In the 7th Plan of Gujarat, Rs. 
54 crores were allotted for the purpose of watershed development 
programme, of which 50% has been utilised, resulting in the decrease 
in the allocation for the 8th plan down to Rs. 50 crores. Water 
management does not mean large storage and canal networks. A 
realistic irrigation policy and plan would consider the optimum 
demand of the region, the land, terrain, ecological conditions and 
the needs. It also does not necessarily mean excess grain production 
in every area. Neglecting all such true solutions, the state 
continues to facilitate work on the SSP, which alone consumes about 
85% of Gujarat's irrigation budget, efforts and attention, and which 
may not benefit the needy areas at all.

Along with water recharging, there is a need of putting restraint on 
the unmindful extraction of the groundwater, especially for the cash 
crops. The water problem became serious with the extraction of 
groundwater in Saurashtra and North Gujarat from 85% to 350%.

Gujarat politicians know all this and they also admit it in private. 
However, the real solutions can taken only if the obsession with the 
white elephants like the SSP is restricted and the already scarce 
financial resources are diverted to the real and sustainable 
solutions.

(Nandini Oza) (Shripad Dharmadhikary) (Sadhana Dadhich)

Pune/ May 29, 2000