Exhibition On ‘Water Harvesting’

Rural Industries and Animal Husbandry Minister Pongalur N Palanisamy (left) takes a look at a stall after inaugurating the exhibition on ‘Water Harvesting’ at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in Coimbatore on Monday. Poor resource base of farmers, combined with labour and water scarcity, inadequate use of inputs like balanced fertilizers and non-adoption of high yielding varieties make dry land agriculture a non-profitable one. The only solution to tackle this is developing water resources in dry lands, Minister for Rural Industries and Animal Husbandry Pongalur N. Palanisamy said here on Monday.

Inaugurating a three-day international symposium on ‘Water Harvesting’ at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), he sought the development of water resources such as farm ponds, small tanks, soil moisture conservation techniques and creation of supplemental irrigation facilities, in addition to harvesting water in rainfed areas. “Only this can lead to a Green Revolution in dry lands.”

A.K. Singh, Deputy Director General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Government of India, said that 80 per cent of the cereals, 75 per cent of oil seeds, 48 per cent of rice and 65 per cent of cotton were grown in rainfed areas. “This is enough to determine the significance of such areas. More effective mechanisms are required for use of water in rainfed areas. The role of agro-chemicals in retaining water in the soil is yet to be accepted in India, as it is not economical and the mode of application is also not economically viable.”

P. Santhanakrishnan, Registrar, TNAU, said that nearly 60 per cent of India’s cultivable area would remain dependent on dry land farming even after all irrigation potential was fully exploited. Productivity growth in these areas was essential for rural income growth and poverty alleviation and depended critically on better moisture conservation and the development of varieties suited to dealing with moisture stress.

“Now a National Rainfed Area Authority has been proposed to help coordinate the work of different implementing agencies.” B.R. Neupane, Regional Programme Specialist, UNESCO, said 40 per cent of the world’s population was suffering from serious water shortage. Earlier the Minister inaugurated an exhibition on water harvesting. The symposium is being attended by representatives from various parts of the world.

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