Farmer participation on water management in the tank irrigated systems in Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Farmer participation is found to be a solution to arrest the deterioration of the tank irrigation system which is observed in Tamil Nadu state. The study was undertaken with the specific objective of identifying the determinants of farmer participation on water management and its impact on tank performance. The results of the tobit regression model and a production function analysis reveal that the contribution for farmer participation towards water management of Rs 1.00 at the mean level, ceteris paribus, would increase the rice yield by 2.7 kg/ha in Tank only typology whereas in Tank with wells typology by 2.2 kg/ha of land. The positive impact of farmer participation towards water management on rice yield indicates the importance of water management institutions in sustaining rice productivity and it has important policy implications for water management in tank commands. The water users association in the tank irrigated systems should be strengthened for water management which leads to better performance of the tanks.