Using groundwater for dry season irrigation has been the preferred strategy of the Bangladesh government for many years. For example, the privatisation of irrigation in the 1990s led to huge growth in the number of shallow tube-wells. However, groundwater must be managed carefully: there is not enough information available on national groundwater resources to understand or predict long-term environmental impacts of continued use.

Research from the Presidency University, Bangladesh, studies the Barind Multipurpose Development Project (BMDP), a 15-district groundwater irrigation project. The BMDP has a special emphasis on sustainability – environmental, social, economic and technical. It has developed an institutional model that allows the project to be financially independent. This model of sustainable development has been replicated in other parts of the country.

Most water projects in Bangladesh have a narrow focus, such as flood control, drainage or irrigation. Social, economic and environmental factors are largely ignored and there is little monitoring or evaluation. BMDP consciously tries to overcome these problems to meet the challenges of creating the physical and social infrastructure necessary for groundwater irrigation in a semi-arid area.

For example, the project encourages maximum use of carefully spaced deep tube- wells (DTWs) minimises water wastage. BMDP extension officers manage ‘target areas’ for each well, and they receive incentives for expanding the number of farmers using each DTW. The BMDP also constantly monitors quality and quantity of groundwater and aquifer levels. Thousands of poorly maintained rainwater collection tanks have been renovated. BMDP covers all its operational costs through charging user fees for water through an innovative pre-paid coupon system.

The approach has several positive features:

• Water user groups, consisting of users from many different social groups and institutions, give feedback to BMDP managers to improve project performance.
• Sixty percent of BMDP officials and its entire field staff come from local communities.
• The governing body of the BMDP includes Members of the Parliament from all 15 districts, who work with other members of government and civil society. This ensures political support to carry out project objectives.
• A large afforestation campaign and distribution of medicinal plant seedlings are examples of the project’s environmental improvement activities.

The BMDP has encountered several problems, the most significant being when hand wells used to collect drinking water began to dry up in DTW target areas. This has highlighted a need to integrate the planning of irrigation projects with drinking water supplies. Several other important issues still need addressing:

• Some water users feel that fees are too high and are changed too frequently. There is a trade-off between meeting the full cost of operations and providing a service to the poorest people.
• The role of water user groups could be expanded to make irrigation management institutions more representative. Instead of being limited to feedback on irrigation services, groups could be included in making management decisions.
• Although such projects can improve environmental quality in the local project area, many environmental parameters need close monitoring. For example, very little is known about the environmental implications of shifting from growing mixed winter crops to a rice monoculture, which groundwater irrigation makes possible.

Source(s):
‘Sustainable Development through Groundwater Management: a case study on the Barind Tract,’ Water Resources Development 21:3, by I.M.Faisal, S.Parveen and M.R.Kabir, 2005

id21 Research Highlight: 29 November 2005

Further Information:
I.M.Faisal
Civil Engineering, Presidency University
House 11a Road 92
Gulshan 2
Dhaka 1212
Bangladesh

Contact the contributor: imfaisal@yahoo.com

Presidency University, Bangladesh

Other related links:
'Tackling water scarcity in India: farmer participation in irrigation management '

'Reforming water services in India'

'Measuring the pace of water sector reform in Asia'

'How irrigation can benefit people in South Asia'

'Watershed development in India – a tool for the rich or for the poor?'