Find out what Oleg Korol, CEO, Tevatronic and Arnaud Cauchois, Principal Water Resources Specialist, Asian Development Bank have to say about the available innovative tools and solutions in Irrigation and water management sector and how they are adding value to the sustainability and overall development of the sector.
ET-Insights: What are the Innovative tools and solutions in Irrigation and water management sector?
Oleg Korol: The latest trend in irrigation innovation always has to do with the information:
- DSS (Decision Support Systems): this type of system will provide the farmer with additional information for him to use as he pleases. Some of the providers will provide an interpretation of the data.
- Control Systems: systems that control irrigation based on farmer input
- Autonomous Control: irrigation based on data from DSS systems which is cranched by a server to provide irrigation instructions without human intervention.
Arnaud Cauchois:
- Irrigation modernization and water management requires both technical and institutional innovations that will improve efficiency in all irrigation processes (storage, diversion, conveyance, distribution, application, agriculture production, use of rainfall and ground water, drainage) and ultimately service delivery to farmers– show slide: irrigation processes in irrigation – linkages with management processes, organization, legislation. Inputs, outputs. The first innovation is to get this right, understand that all processes are linked and that modernization plans should appraise performance in comprehensive manner and look for innovations at each level process.
- Thereafter you can meaningfully introduce specific innovations with the understanding that the enabling environment for their adoption is in place. eg.: what happens if we introduce micro-irrigation in a system that cannot provide assured and flexible supply? Farmers must trust that they will get 100% service reliable to adopt micro-irrigation. Else they may not adopt or drop it quickly with substantial losses.
- ADB focus on comprehensive modernization approach that create suitable environment for innovation – some example of specific innovations are as follows:
1) Introduction of Design Build Operate contracting modality in the irrigation sector to ensure quality construction and performance-based management of large scale pressurized irrigation systems
2) Development of conjunctive ground water and surface buried pressure pipe systems in the tail of large scale surface water deficient scheme.
3) Prepaid meter in irrigation to improve irrigation service fee collection
4) Remote sensing for measuring water productivity and/or crop water requirement – Development of mobile for farmers to guide irrigation scheduling.
ET-Insights: How are they adding value to the sustainability and overall development of the sector?
Oleg Korol:
- DSS: If the information is simple enough to the farmer will be able to utilize irrigation water more efficiently
- Control systems: Doesn’t really help with sustainability, just make the life of the farmer easier
- Autonomous System: if working as intended can reduce the water consumption significantly
Arnaud Cauchois:
- We have developed modernization plans that are identifying critical weakness affecting the quality of service delivery and ultimately provide a better environment for adoption of micro-irrigation. The use of private sector for the O&M of irrigation systems is also believed to ensure greater service performance. Service performance is critical for farmers willingness to pay for irrigation service and therefore for the sustainability.
- Use of remote sensing has helped assessing performance issues in large scale irrigation – (areas with low water productivity) and we are now developing a pilot to test usefulness for greater precision irrigation (micro-irrigation)
ET-Insights: How do you look towards the possible ways of collaboration and partnership in the sector?
Oleg Korol: To make sure that any type of project gets off the ground, on a large enough scale to make a difference, the governance of the project has to include the private and the governmental sector.
The government has to provide the conditions for the project to be viable, the government has to be the organization that is looking for the greater good type outcome out of the project. The private sector on its part has to make sure that efficiency is there.
Arnaud Cauchois:
- ADB is keen to finance piloting of High Level Technology/innovations in the sector on grant basis in India and elsewhere in Asia. This can help testing some innovations in real context – these can then be upscaled into large scale project financed by ADB or others.
- Private sector should be willing to play a greater role in educating farmers and other stakeholders on (i) the pros and cons of their technologies with specific guidance on risks, (ii) help farmers assessing risks on their specific project (iii) train farmers and provide hand holding. See current better life farming from Bayer, Netafim, DE Haat, Big market etc.
- PPPs ( Management contracts, DBOs, or even concessions) for securing performance management of pressurized irrigation scheme and enabling revenue collections.
