Annual Progress Report 2008-09

THEME III
EXPERIMENT 4
NATURAL RESOURCES AND SOCIO ECONOMIC STUDY OF TEHRI GARHWAL
REGION OF UTTARAKHAND
INTRODUCTION

Land resources of India are under immense pressure, it shares only 2 per cent of the
world’s geographical area, but supports around 18 per cent of the world’s population and over 15
per cent of the world’s livestock. The pressure on land and water resources, through intensive
agriculture, industrialization and urbanization leads to environmental changes which is causing
ecological imbalance and affecting agricultural and field activities. The socio-economic growth of
country depends primarily on continuing preservation and effective utilization of these resources.
As the success of planning for developmental activities depend on the quality and quantity of
information available on both natural and socio-economic resources. Therefore, accurate and
reliable data base generation and management are extremely important for devising the ways for
optimal planning and management of these water resources.

Agricultural activities in the hilly areas are generally hazardous and associated with
continued degradation of land. Hilly areas are also facing a serious water availability crisis due to
various developmental and economic activities which result in reduction of protective vegetation
cover and forests. This results in poor soil fertility, high sediment yield of rivers and water
reservoirs. Due to lack of the protective cover, the infiltration and subsequent recharge to ground
water has declined adversely. Viable sources of water like springs, which are plenty in hills, are
drying up because of inadequate recharge of flow domain of springs. Almost, negligible number
of springs are being monitored presently for their flow and other hydrological parameters and
there is no systematic study of the spring flow for developing these springs as dependable and
sustainable sources of water for rural population in remote hilly areas of Uttarakhand .The
difficulty to reach the nature of hilly areas possesses serious limitation on ground observation.
Field experimentation and information collection to develop planning activities is, therefore,
necessary.

For a broad view of socio-economic studies, it was also required to conduct a participatory
rural appraisal (PRA) survey in the village. This mat be done to assess the techno socio-economic
gap analysis so that the module of appropriate rural/agro technology can be developed.

There are several aspects that broadly encompass socio-economic studies which include
cropping pattern, fertilizer application, mechanization adopted, plant protection measures adopted.
The major among these is utilization of water resources, their harvesting and their storage. The
scientific database on soil and water resources is prerequisite, in the areas where these resources
are limited. In such areas it becomes necessary to study the soil characteristics in a sustained
manner. The water should be used judiciously according to their potential to meet the demand of
overgrowing population
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In view of above, a study was planned in Hanswan village and near by area of Tehri
district of Uttarakhand for the planning of natural resources along with a study of socio-economic
status of the area.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA

Location
Study area was located on Rishikesh-Uttarkashi route, near Chamba in district Tehri
Garhwal of Uttaranchal state, as shown in Fig 4.1. Tehri Garhwal district lied between 79008'95"
to 79002'04" E longitude and 30003'10" to 30050'45" N latitude with the population density of 112
persons per km2. Hanswan village lies on between Longitude 78o 23’14.3” E and Latitude
30o19’30.66” N with 320.8 ha (3.208 km2) geographical area. The altitude of the place varied
from 1280 m to 1800 m above MSL.

Fig. 4.1 Index map of Chamba-Hanswan watershed in Tehri Garhwal district of

Uttaranchal state.

Topography
Slope, drainage, shade cast etc. are the important elements of topography. There was a lot
of variation in the topography of the study area. In conformity with the dramatic altitudinal and
climatic differences, the region supported variety of forest ecosystems. The land slope of the area
varied from 35 to 50 per cent.

Soils and Climate

The soils of the region were formed from rock with biotite, schist and phyllitic material,
under cool and moist climate. The soils of Hanswan were brown to greyish brown and dark grey
in colour, besides being non-calcareous and neutral to slightly acidic in reaction. These soils were
fairly deep and moderately permeable. The soil density of study area ranged from 1.34 to 1.43
g/cm3.

The climate of this region was humid temperate but variations exist which largely depends
upon the altitude and geological differences. The valleys are hot in summer and cold in winter.
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

The average temperature in this area varied from 30C to 300C. The average rainfall in study area
varied from 1200 to 1400 mm of which 70 to 80 per cent was received between June to
September. The average relative humidity varied from 60 to 70 per cent in the northern hills and
30 to 40 percent in the south-western dry areas. Southern aspect was exposed to more insolation.
The insolation on southern aspect was about 1.5 to 2.4 times higher than that of northern aspect.

Sources of Irrigation
The major source of irrigation was natural water springs and streams covering 70 per cent
of the total irrigated area. The net irrigated area in the district was only 24.4 per cent of net area
sown. 90 per cent of cultivated area was still under rain-fed farming.

Crop and Cropping Sequences

According to survey conducted at Chamba-Hanswan watershed, it was found that there
were more than 8 different types of crops grown as given in table 4.1 , out of which maximum
area was under wheat, while finger millet was next most popular crop among farmers.. The major
fruit crops of the region were apple, walnut, mango, citrus, plum, and peach but, productivity of
these fruits was quite low mainly due to hail storms.

Table 4.1 Major cropping sequences in hill zone of Tehri Garhwal district
Cropping sequence Duration (year)
I. Upto 1500 m elevation
Rainfed Rice- Wheat-Finger millet-fallow Two
(Soybean +Black gram + Horse gram)- Two
Barley/Wheat –Barnyard millet –Wheat
Barnyard millet –Wheat-Finger millet-fallow Two
Rice (irrigated)- Wheat One
Rice – Potato One
II. Above 1500 m elevation
Barnyard millet- Wheat-Soybean-Vegetable pea Two
Grain amaranth- Wheat –Finger millet- fallow Two

Soil Characterization
Based on morphological, physical and chemical characteristics of soils, their associated
landscape features and field correlation of auger-hole data, 6 soil series, were tentatively named
according to elevation difference. These are Chamba, Manjur, Than, Dikhol, Dural gaon and
Hanswan gaon. The surface texture of all the soils was from sandy to silty clay loam, whereas in
case of subsoil texture, it varied from sand to clay loam and profiles were excessively to poorly-
drained.

Land capability classification

Land capability classification is an interpretative grouping of soil mainly based on
inherent characteristics of soil, external land features and environmental factors that limit the use
of land.

i.) Capability classes : The land capability classes ranged from class I to VIII. The lands of Class I to
IV were able for cultivation, while the lands of Class V to VIII were not suitable for cultivation.
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The lands of class V to VII were suitable for pasture and forestry, and land of class VIII was
suitable for wild life. The degree of permanent limitations increased when we move from class I
to class VIII, which implied that soils of class first has no significant limitations, class II soil has
moderate limitations that reduces the choice of plants and requires special conservation practices.
In the similar manner the limitations go on increasing till class VIII soil.

ii ) Sub classes : Sub classes were given according to British Columbia Land Inventory (BCLI)
classification system. These were indicated by small case letters such as ‘c’ for adverse climate,
‘d’ for low permeability or undesirable soil structure, ‘e’ for erosion limitation, ‘m’ for moisture
limitation, ‘n’ for salinity, ‘p’ for stoniness, ‘t’ for topography and ‘w’ for excess water, drainage
problems and overflow.

Soil Survey
The soil survey of Hanswan was carried out using GARMIN Global Positioning System
(GPS) for traversing, fixing spots for profile and field mapping. Depending on terrain and
physiography of the area, pits were dug at random intervals and profiles examined to fix the soil
series. During traverse surface soil samples were examined at random interval to delineate soil
types.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Collection of Weather Data

The meteorological data were collected for a period of 7 years (1999 to 2005) from Agro-
meteorological Observatory Hill Campus, Ranichauri which was nearest to the study area.

Collection of Soil Samples

The soil samples were collected from different locations with the help of a soil auger
taking 0-15 cm surface soil and 15-30 cm sub-surface soil, separately.

Collection of water samples.

Water samples were collected from 3 different spring sources i.e, Fakua spring, Hill
campus spring and Hanswan. Various physio-chemical laboratory tests were conducted on these
samples so as to assess their purity and usability for different uses like domestic and irrigation.

LABORATORY STUDIES

Analysis of Soil Samples

The soil samples were analyzed from all selected points/locations as per requirements
under Sys (1980) model. The analysis was done to find out the percentage of sand, silt and clay
fractions. This was carried out by Boyoucos hydrometer method (Day, 1965), with the
modification that hydrometer readings were taken in suspension, in which dispersion treatments
were given as per procedure of Kilmer and Alexander (1949).
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Table 4.2 Land capability classifications (A.I.S.L.U.S.O, 1970)

Land Land capability class
character-
I II III IV V VI VII VIII
istics

loamy sand,
loam,
Surface clay loam,
sandy loam, sand, clay - - - gravel stony
texture silty clay
silty loam
loam

Soil depth
(cm) > 90 45 – 90 22.5 – 45 7.5 – 22.5 < 7.5 < 7.5 - -

Moderately Imperfectly Poorly Very poorly

Drainage Well drained - Excessive -
drained drained drained drained
Slope (%) 0–1 1–5 5 – 10 10 - 15 15 – 25 25 - 35 30 - 50 > 50
Very very
Erosion Very slight Slight Moderate Severe - Very severe -
severe
Salinity
Slight Moderate Strong Very strong Severe - - -
class
Rainfall
100 – 200 - 50 – 100 25 - 50 < 25 - - -
(cm)
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Physico-chemical Analysis of Spring Water

The analysis of sprinfg water was done in the water quality lab of depart ment of irrigation
and drainage engineering, using standard procedure. The following parameters wwere estimated.
a) pH of water sample : The pH of an aqueous solution represents the concentration of
hydrogen ions in the solution. The pH scale contains values ranging from 0 to 14.The pH
range from 6.7 to 7.6 is generally acceptable for human consumption or domestic purposes.
b) Bio-Chemical O2 demand (BOD) : The BOD is an index of the presence of organic matter in
water . It is the amount of O2 required to cause biological decomposition of organic matter
and waste. When the oxidization is complete and no O2 is required, BOD can be estimated0.
c) Dissolved oxygen (DO): Dissolved oxygen is the measure of ability of a water body to
support the well balanced aquatic life. Insufficient O2 leads to onset of anaerobic conditions
qnd subsequently to the release of odoreous or noxious gases such as H2S. When dissolved
O2 is sufficiently present in water body carbon turns into CO2, S becomes sulphate amnd N2
forms amonia and nitrates. On the other hand, when DO is limited, methane is released from
carbon. Odorous amines result from N2 and foul smell in H2S gas formed sulphur.
d) Alkalinity: Alkalinity of a water sample refers to its capacity to neutralize acids. It is the sum
of total capacity of chemical components that tends to raise the pH of water above 4.5.
Anionic radicals such as carbonates (CO32-), bicarbonates, OH- and phosphates contribute to
raise the alkalinity which is expressed in mg of CaCO3 per lt. of water.
e) Hardness of water: The bicarbonates, chlorides and sulphates mainly of Ca, Mg and Na
dissolved in water accounts for hardness of water. This hardness is caused by carbonates
and referred as calcium hardness. The temporary hardness can be removed by boiling. The
hardness caused by chlorides and sulphates is known as permanent hardness and cannot be
removed by boiling. The sum of two hardness of water is classified as total hardness.
f) Chloride content: It was estimated using standard laboratory method . Silver nitrte reacts
with chloride to form very slightly soluble white precipitate of AgCl. At the end point when
all the chlorides get precipitated, free silver ions react with chromate to brown to form silver
chromate of reddish colour.

ANALYSIS OF RAINFALL FOR ITS BEHAVIOUR

The rainfall data collected for a period of 7 years from, Hill Campus, Ranichauri were
analysed for the following parameters:
i. Rainfall behaviour,
ii. Frequency analysis of annual daily maximum rainfall,
iii. Weekly, monthly and annual rainfalls,
iv. Drought analysis for determination of normal, drought and surplus months in the
year,

Drought analysis
The monthly and yearly total rainfall was determined for each year. The monthly and
yearly events were then classified as drought, normal and surplus using the following criteria.
1. Drought month
The month was classified as drought month in which precipitation received was less than
50 per cent of average monthly rainfall.
2. Surplus month
The month was classified as surplus month in which precipitation received was more than
twice of average monthly rainfall
3. Normal month
The month was classified as drought month in which precipitation received was in
between 50 per cent and 200 per cent of average monthly rainfall.
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ESTIMATION OF WATER DEMAND

Estimation of Reference Evapo-transpiration

The reference evapo-transpiration (ETO) was estimated by using the FAO Penman-
Monteith (1998) method from the available data of temperature, relative humidity, wind speed
and sunshine hours. Penman-Monteith equation developed by Smith et al. (1998) had been used
to estimate daily ETO. The final form of the FAO Penman-Monteith equation was as given below,
900
0.408 ∆( Rn − G ) + γ u 2 (es − ea )
ETo = T + 273 … (4.1)
∆ + γ (1 + 0.34u 2 )

where, ETo = reference evapo-transpiration (mm day-1)

∆ = slope of saturation vapour pressure curve (kPa 0C-1)
Rn = net radiation (MJ m-2 day-1)
G = soil heat flux density (MJ m-2 day-1)
γ = psychometric constant (kPa 0C-1)
T = mean daily air temperature (0C)
es = saturation vapour pressure (kPa)
ea = actual vapour pressure (kPa), and
u2 = average daily wind speed at 2 m height (m sec-1)

Estimation of crop evapo-transpiration

The crop evapo-transpiration was worked out by multiplying the reference evapo-
transpiration (ETO) values by the crop coefficients. The crop coefficients based on the FAO-56
curve methods were used.

ET crop = K c * ET O ... (4.2)

where,
ET crop =crop evapo-transpiration
Kc =crop coefficients
ET O = reference evapo-transpiration
The crop coefficients were considered weekly. For each week, for different crops the
weighted value of the crop coefficients was used. It was weighted with the respective area under
the particular crop as given in FAO hand hook.

Estimation of Effective Rainfall

The total incident rainfall was not used for analysis. To account for losses due to surface
runoff and deep percolation, the effective rainfall was used. The effective rainfall was calculated
according to USDA Soil Conservation Service Method. The formulae used were as given below.
125 − 0.2 × Ptot 
Peff = Ptot   for Ptot< 250 mm (4.3)
 125 
and Peff =125 +0.1 ×Ptot for Ptot> 250 mm (4.4)

Estimation of Net Water Demand

The total water demand was calculated using the values of crop evapo-transpiration and
effective rainfall. The final demand was estimated as:
Net water demand = Crop Evapo-transpiration – Effective rainfall.
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SOCIO-ECONOMIC SURVEY

In order to determine the socio-economic aspects and effect of natural springs of Tehri
region , Hanswan village in the area was selected. A PRA survey was conducted in the village to
assess the techno-socio-economical gap analysis so that the module of appropriate rural /Agro
technical can be developed. For achieving above goal a semi-structured interview schedule was
constructed to gather informations like historical time line, crop time line, crops and cropping
pattern. Besides information about variation in land, vegetation, irrigation, status and general
problems from top to bottom.

Seasonality of crops and other information were collected from different sources by using
PRA tools. Venn diagram showing the importance and linkages of different institutions working
around the villages was prepared .Various problems were identified through participatory
planning in the villages by the farmers. Subsequently problems-cause analysis was done and
feasible solutions identified.
In this survey various information collected ase given below

i. Family size and Land Holding of Surveyed Villagers: In this 18 families of Hanswan
village were surveyed and information about the number of family members, the amount
of land they hold etc. and this information was listed.
ii. Educational Status : Alongwith land holding information regarding the education of
family members were also collected.
iii. Crop and Crop Rotations : Information about local crop and their seuences were gathered,
the reason behind a particular crop sequence, were also collected.
iv. Matrix Ranking : The purpose of matrix ranking is to know the criteria of preference of
crop or variety by the villagers.
v. Mobility Map of Hanswan Village : To know the mobility of villagers various information
were collected and analysed to asses the problems relating to daily activities.
vi. Wealth Ranking: In this three income groups for farmers were created based on their
livelihood., first is low income group,then medium income group and lastl high income
group.
vii. Changes and Trends : This is done to know farmers perception for changes over the
period of time on various aspects including agriculture, health, education, animal
husbandry and related social aspects.
viii. Well being analysis: To understand the standard of living and resource availability
of the farmers in the village the exercise is done with the full involvement of the
villagers with their consensus.

RESULTS

Physical and Chemical Properties of Soil

i. Particle size distribution It was observed from analysis of surface soils that, the sand fraction
was in the range of 55 to 80 per cent and sand fraction for sub-surface soils was observed from
60 to 87 per cent . It was also observed that, sand fraction decreased with depth.
The silt and clay percentage variation at different elevations is given in Table 4.3. It was
also, that silt fraction ranged between 2 to 23 per cent for surface and 3-17 percent for sub-surface
soils and decreased with depth. The clay fraction increased with depth in most of the profiles. The
texture of soils, in the study area, was from sandy clay loam to loamy sand.
ii. pH value : The pH values observed for different soil samples , using pH meter, are given
in Table 4.4. The surface soil was acidic in nature. The pH value increased from 6.3 to 7.2.
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Table 4.3 : Textural class of soil

Location 0-15 cm depth 15-30 cm depth

San Silt % Clay Texture Sand Silt Clay Texture of

d% % of soil % % % soil
I. 77 7 16 Sandy 87 5 8 Loamy Sand
loam
II. 55 23 22 Sandy 66 15 19 Sandy loam
clay
loam
III. 70 11 19 Sandy 71 11 19 Sandy loam
loam
IV. 64 11 25 Sandy 60 17 23 Sandy clay
clay loam
loam
80 2 18 Loamy 79 3 18 Loamy sand
V. sand

Table 4.4 : pH of soil samples

Location pH at depth 0-15 cm pH at depth 15-30 cm
I 6.80 6.30
II 6.37 6.80
III 7.12 6.62
IV 6.76 6.58
V 6.38 6.64

iii. Soil characteristics under different land uses

The soils under forest were dark brown to brown and greyish brown. Soils were sandy
clay loam, sandy loam and loamy sand in texture. These soils were well drained moderately acidic
reaction having pH value in the range of 6.37 to 7.12 and sub-surface soils were also acidic to
neutral in nature having pH value in the range of 6.3 to 6.8.

The soils under waste land were dark brown to brown in color, and sandy loam to loamy
sand in texture. These soils were well to excessively drained having chert and gravels in varying
amounts. Soils were acidic to neutral in nature having pH in between 6.37 to 7.12.

However, the soils under cultivation were generally brown to greyish brown and yellowish
brown and few patches of reddish brown in colour, loamy sand to sandy clay loam in texture, well
to excessively drained, medium to high in organic carbon content. The surface soils, under
cultivated lands, were generally moderately acidic to neutral in reaction, having pH value in the
range of 6.2 to 7.12. The soil texture for different elevations and land use is given in Table 4.5.

Physico-chemical analysis of Natural Spring Water

Physico-chemical properties of the water samples collected from natural springs located at
Hanswan village and nearby area are shown in Table 4.6 it was observed that water from Hill
Campus, Ranichauri and Hanswan were slightly acidic, whereas, that from Phakuwa natural
spring was alkaline in nature. On comparing the value of TDS, it was found that water from all
the springs have no detrimental effects on crops. However, the TDS content was higher in the
spring water of Hanswan village in comparison to other spring waters. On comparing and
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studying DO values, spring water was classified as that belonging to Class A which says that the
spring water can be safely used for drinking and does not require any conventional treatment.

Table 4.5: Soil texture for different elevation and land use.
Elevation and Land use Soil texture
I. Elevation
High hills cs, sl, sicl
Mid hills sil, sicl, l, sil
Low hills cs, sl, ls, l
II. Land use groups
Forest land cs, sl, sil, sic, sicl
Waste land cs, sl, sicl, sil
III. Cultivated land
Well maintained terraces sl, ls, l
Poorly maintained terraces cs, ls

Table 4.6 : Physico – chemical properties of water samples

S.No. Name of pH EC TDS Alkalinity Hardness DO
water (μ) (mg/l) (mg/l) mg/l (mg/l)
sample
1. Hill 6.19 80 60 85 2.43 5.76
Campus
2. Hanswan 6.69 460 280 78 14.64 6.72
3. Phakauwa 10.25 70 40 75 9.748 5.9

Rainfall Analysis
Monthly rainfall analysis
Study of rainfall pattern as given in table 4.7 showed that the rainfall was maximum
(84.4mm) during July, after which rainfall started to decline till December. The maximum rain
occurs during August-September months (about 45.7%), while during the remaining months its
distribution was very poor i.e. little rainfall, particularly in November and December.

The data were also analysed for statistical parameters such as standard deviation (σ) and
coefficient of variation (Cv) . The coefficient of variation (Cv) was found to be least in January as
33.06 % and maximum in November as 4180 %.This variation in Cv indicates that rainfall
variation during January month was less but, in November month there was large variation in the
rainfall.Therefore, prediction of rainfall in November was quite difficult.

Annual rainfall analysis

It can be observed that the total annual rainfall for this period was erratic in nature with the
minimum total of 719.1 mm in 2001 and maximum total of 1386.9 mm in 2005. The average
annual rainfall during 7 years of analysis was found to be 1140.6 mm.

The peak value of annual rainfall was observed during year 2005 followed by 2000, 2002 ,
2004 , 2003 and 1999, whereas troughs were observed during the year 1999 followed by 2001
for which annual rainfalls were less than mean annual rainfall (719.1 mm). The percentage of
seasonal rainfall with respect to annual rainfall for 7 years’ period is shown in Table 4.8. it was
noticed that the percentage of seasonal rainfall with respect to annual rainfall was maximum with
48.8 per cent during the year 1999 and minimum with 30.7 per cent during the year 2001.
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Table 4.7 Mean monthly rainfall with statistical parameters.

Month Mean monthly Standard deviation, Coefficient of

rainfall, mm σ variation, Cv
January 25.1 8.3 33.06
Feburary 40.2 31.7 78.6
March 21.53 40.5 188
April 11.92 6.6 55.36
May 19.27 10.0 51.89
June 35.9 22.8 63.509
July 84.41 41.8 49.5
August 67.87 23.57 34.73
September 56.5 43.67 72.29
October 6.34 11.88 187.38
November 1 41.8 4180
December 4.967 6.33 127.44

Table 4.8 Annual and seasonal rainfall distribution

Year Annual rainfall, mm Seasonal rainfall, mm % (Seasonal rainfall/
(June to Nov.) annual rainfall)
1999 939.7 459.0 48.84
2000 1334.4 523.8 39.25
2001 719.1 221.4 30.79
2002 1255.4 408.6 32.55
2003 1173.8 405.0 34.50
2004 1174.9 549.9 46.80
2005 1386.9 608.4 43.87

Drought Analysis
Drought, normal and surplus months
On the basis of definitions outlined earlier, the rainfall for a month to be normal, surplus
and drought with the average rainfall is given in Table 4.9. There was very less rainfall in the
month of November (average rainfall of 10 mm) for the period of study and overall 6 numbers of
months of November out of 7 months were observed as drought months, therefore, November was
categorized as drought month. Month wise and year wise distribution of number of months to be
drought, surplus and normal are shown in Tables 4.10.

Table 4.9 Drought, surplus and normal months with average monthly rainfall
Month Average Drought (less Normal (in Surplus (more
rainfall, mm than) between) than)
January 250 150 150-500 500
February 402 201 201-804 804
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March 215 108 108-430 430

April 119 60 60-238 238
May 192 96 96-384 384
June 360 180 180-720 720
July 844 422 422-1688 1688
September 565 283 283-1130 1130
October 63 32 32-126 126
November 10 5 5-20 20
December 50 25 25-100 100

Table 4.10 Month wise distribution of number of months to be drought, surplus and
normal
Month Drought Months Normal Months Surplus Months
January 2 5 0
February 3 2 2
March 2 4 1
April 2 5 0
May 0 6 1
June 1 5 1
July 1 5 1
August 1 6 0
September 2 4 1
October 4 2 1
November 6 1 0
December 4 3 0

Table 4.11 Year wise distribution of total number of months to be drought, surplus and
normal.
Year Drought Month Normal Month Surplus Month
1999 5 7 0
2000 3 7 2
2001 5 6 1
2002 3 7 2
2003 4 8 0
2004 3 8 1
2005 5 5 2

From the tables 4.9 and 4.11 , it can be observed that about 57 percent of the total number
of months were normal months during the period of 7 years (1999-2005) .It was also observed
that out of total 7 years, more than 43 per cent of the years had 5 or more number of drought
months. Maximum number of normal months in a year was found to be 8, which accounted for
only 19 percent of total years (Most of the drought months had occurred in the post and pre-
monsoon periods i.e., October to May having highest frequency for November (6 drought months
out of 7).

It was further observed that, frequency of occurrence of Normality was highest in the
month of August and May, followed by January, April, June and July. Normality for the month of
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August was found to be 85.7 per cent followed by May (85.7%), March-May (71.4%), January-
June (64.2%). During the monsoon period (June to October) was 62.8 percent of the total months
were normal, 25.7 per cent under drought and rest 11.5 per cent were surplus months , while for
the other period normality was 53.06 per cent. During the Rabi season i.e. October to February,
out of total 35 months, the number of drought months were worked out to be 54.28%. This
indicated the failure of Rabi crops under rain-fed conditions.

Estimation of Water Demand

The irrigation water requirement was worked out by subtracting the value of the
effective rainfall from the crop evapo-transpiration. The estimated values of evapotranpiration and
rainfall for years 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2005 are presented in Fig 4.2 to 4.5 respectively. The
overall surface irrigation efficiency of 35 % was assured for Kharif and Rabi season and that for
sprinkler or drip irrigation 90 % was used. The maximum irrigation water was required for paddy
in the 25th week. During this week water requirement was about 535 mm .

Gross Irrigation Requirement

Gross irrigation requirement was calculated by dividing net irrigation requirement with
surface irrigation efficiency. It has a maximum value of 1528.8 mm for paddy for the 25th
week . Gross Irrigation requirement for different crops grown in the area are given in Table 4.12

Table 4.12: Gross irrigation requirement for different crops using surface
irrigation
Week no Week Millet Wheat Paddy Potato Pea Tomato
1 Jan 1-7 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
2 Jan 8-14 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
3 Jan 15-21 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
4 Jan 22-28 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
5 Jan 29-4 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
6 Feb 5-11 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
7 Feb 12-18 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
8 Feb 19-25 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
9 Feb 26-4 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Mar 5-11 0.000 9.117 0.000 0.000 0.000 1.610
11 Mar 12-18 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 14.740
12 Mar 19-25 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
13 Mar 26-1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 14.740
14 April 2-8 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 61.340
15 April 9-15 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 61.570
16 April 16-22 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 70.220
17 April 23-29 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 8.400
18 April 30-6 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 13.060
19 May 7-13 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 27.680
20 May 14-20 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
21 May 21-27 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
22 May 28-3 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 z0.000
23 June 4-10 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

24 June 11-17 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

25 June 18-24 0.000 0.000 1528.883 0.000 0.000 0.000
26 June 25-1 0.000 0.000 1229.665 0.000 0.000 0.000
27 July 2-8 0.000 0.000 903.249 0.000 0.000 0.000
28 July 9-15 0.000 0.000 889.672 0.000 0.000 0.000
29 July 16-22 0.000 0.000 782.712 0.000 0.000 0.000
30 July 23-29 0.000 0.000 714.618 0.000 0.000 0.000
31 July 30-5 0.000 0.000 706.628 0.000 0.000 0.000
32 Aug 6-12 0.000 0.000 666.446 0.000 0.000 0.000
33 Aug 13-19 0.000 0.000 553.133 0.000 0.000 0.000
34 Aug 20-26 0.000 0.000 513.552 0.000 0.000 0.000
35 Aug 27-2 0.000 0.000 633.077 0.000 0.000 0.000
36 Sep 3-9 0.000 0.000 468.358 0.000 0.000 0.000
37 Sep 10-16 0.000 0.000 385.654 0.000 0.000 0.000
38 Sep 17-23 0.000 0.000 418.464 0.000 0.000 0.000
39 Sep 24-30 0.000 0.000 413.224 0.000 0.000 0.000
40 Oct 1-7 0.000 0.000 515.629 0.000 0.000 0.000
41 Oct 8-14 0.000 0.000 399.230 0.000 0.000 0.000
42 Oct 15-21 0.000 0.000 459.792 0.000 0.000 0.000
43 Oct 22-28 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
44 Oct 29-4 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
45 Nov 5-11 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
46 Nov 12-18 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
47 Nov 19-25 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
48 Nov 26-2 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
49 Dec 3-9 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
50 Dec 10-16 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
51 Dec 17-23 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
52 Dec 24-31 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Fig 4.2 Average monthly Rainfall and ET for the Year 1999

Series 1:Rainfall Series 2:ET

Fig 4.3 Average monthly Rainfall and ET for the Year 2001
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Fig 4.4 Average monthly Rainfall and ET for the Year 2003

Series 1:Rainfall Series 2:ET

Fig 4.5 Average monthly Rainfall and ET for the Year 2005

Planning for Area Irrigated

There is a storage tank in the village of capacity 17.6 m3 .The cultivated area is being
irrigated by means of this storage tank. The area irrigated was calculated by dividing volume of
this tank by gross irrigation requirement of different crops. It was estimated that maximum area
that can be irrigated through surface irrigation system is 7.62 ha for the tomato crop in the 10 th
week.
Table 4.13 Area irrigated
Name and No of Cap.
week Of Area Irrigated (ha)
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

tank Millet Wheat Paddy Potato Pea Tomato

123.2
1 Jan 1-7 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
2 Jan 8-14 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
3 Jan 15-21 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
4 Jan 22-28 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
5 Jan 29-4 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
6 Feb 5-11 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
7 Feb 12-18 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
8 Feb 19-25 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
9 Feb 26-4 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
10 Mar 5-11 0 0.0 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 7.65
123.2
11 Mar 12-18 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.84
123.2
12 Mar 19-25 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
13 Mar 26-1 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.84
123.2
14 April 2-8 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.20
123.2
15 April 9-15 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02
April 16- 123.2
16 22 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.18
April 23- 123.2
17 29 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.47
123.2
18 April 30-6 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.94
123.2
19 May 7-13 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.45
123.2
20 May 14-20 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
21 May 21-27 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
22 May 28-3 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
23 June 4-10 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
24 June 11-17 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.0
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

123.2
25 June 18-24 0 0.00 0.00 1.24 0.00 0.00
123.2
26 June 25-1 0 0.00 0.00 0.99 0.00 0.00
123.2
27 July 2-8 0 0.00 0.00 0.74 0.00 0.00
123.2
28 July 9-15 0 0.00 0.00 0.72 0.00 0.00
123.2
29 July 16-22 0 0.00 0.00 0.64 0.00 0.00
123.2
30 July 23-29 0 0.00 0.00 0.58 0.00 0.00
123.2
31 July 30-5 0 0.00 0.00 0.57 0.00 0.00
123.2
32 Aug 6-12 0 0.00 0.00 0.54 0.00 0.00
123.2
33 Aug 13-19 0 0.00 0.00 0.45 0.00 0.00
123.2
34 Aug 20-26 0 0.00 0.00 0.42 0.00 0.00
123.2
35 Aug 27-2 0 0.00 0.00 0.51 0.00 0.00
123.2
36 Sep 3-9 0 0.00 0.00 0.38 0.00 0.00
123.2
37 Sep 10-16 0 0.00 0.00 0.31 0.00 0.00
123.2
38 Sep 17-23 0 0.00 0.0 0.34 0.00 0.00
123.2
39 Sep 24-30 0 0.00 0.00 0.34 0.00 0.00
123.2
40 Oct 1-7 0 0.00 0.00 0.42 0.00 0.00
123.2
41 Oct 8-14 0 0.00 0.00 0.32 0.00 0.00
123.2
42 Oct 15-21 0 0.00 0.00 0.37 0.00 0.00
123.2
43 Oct 22-28 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
44 Oct 29-4 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
45 Nov 5-11 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
46 Nov 12-18 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
47 Nov 19-25 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
48 Nov 26-2 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
49 Dec 3-9 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
50 Dec 10-16 123.2 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

0
123.2
51 Dec 17-23 0 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
123.2
52 Dec 24-31 0 0.00 0.00 0.00

SOCIO ECONOMIC ASPECTS

Family size and land holding of surveyed villagers
The results obtained from the analysis of data revealed that the total members of 18
families of the surveyed village were 96. There were 67 adults in the village out of which 37
were males and 30 were females. There were about 29 minors out of which 16 were males and 13
were females. The average family size of the village was 5.33 members. The average land holding
per villager was 0.1118.

Educational status of Hanswan village

The analysis of data on literacy as shown in table 4.14. indicated that there were 51
educated males and 29 educated females in the village. The number of uneducated males was 2
and the number of uneducated females was 14 . About 35.85 % males and 20.93% females were
educated upto primary level only. There were 22.64 % males and 20.93 % females who have
studied upto matriculate level. Besides this, there were 24.53 % males and 9.3% females who
have been educated upto intermediate level. There were 13.2 % male graduates and 16.28 %
female graduates in the village .Nobody had received post-graduate level of education in the
entire village. The village had 3.77 % illiterate males as to 32.56 % illiterate females. Hence the
percentage of illiterate females was much higher than the percentage of illiterate males. The
literacy rate on the basis of survey conducted in the village was 83.3 %.

Table 4.14 Details of the education of Hanswan village inhabitants

Family Primary Secondary Higher secondary Graduate
M F M F M F M F
1 2
2 3 1 1
3 1 1 1
4 1
5 3 1
6 1 2
7 1 1 1 1
8 1 2 1
9 1 1 1 1 1
10 2 2 1 3 2
11 1 3
12 3 2 2 1
13 1 1 1 1
14 1 1 1
15 1 1 1
16 5 1 3 1
17 1 2 1
18 2 1
Total 19 9 12 9 13 4 7 7
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Ranges of land holdings of surveyed villagers

The average land holdings in the surveyed area of village Hanswan ranged from 0.05 –
0.16 ha. The land holding ranges , upto 0.05 ha, 0.05 – 0.1 ha, 0.1 – 0.2 ha, and above 0.2 ha ,
were held by 11 %, 33 %, 50 % and 5.5 % families, respectively. About 50 % of the villagers
have land holdings in the range of 0.1 – 0.2 ha , i.e., the majority of the families have an average
land holding of 0.15 ha. Maximum land holding per farmer family was 0.24 ha .

Table 4.15 : Ranges of land holdings

Range No. of villagers Percentage

< 0.05 ha 2 11.11
0.05-0.1 ha 6 33.33
0.1- 0.2 ha 9 50.00
>0.2 ha 1 5.50

Crop and crop rotations

Study showed that in lowland crops like barnyard, finger millet, paddy, wheat, etc. and
vegetables capsicum ,potato, french beans etc. Horticulture – plum, walnut, citrus fruits, pear, etc
were grown. Now a days, due to non-renumerative returns and labour shortages only one crop
was grown at a time. Fodder trees like Bhimal, Kharik and chullu were generally grown.

Matrix ranking
The matrix scoring showed that the farmers’ criteria for reduction of crops and subsidiary
enterprises was mainly dependant on profitability, better demand, domestic needs, irrigation
requirement and marketing.
From the study of matrix ranking as shown in fig 4.16and 4.17,it was found that the
farmers of the village felt that wheat and paddy of improved varieties were the most preferred
crops and barnyard, finger millet were preferred next to these crops. It was also observed that
profit and yields were highest from improved varieties It was further observed that after
improved varieties, Mota Dhan was the one preferred by farmers as it requires less time, less
irrigation, less fertilizer , and less insecticides.

It was found that Safed Rikhwa was the least preferred. Jhingora comes third and Kala
Rikwa fourth on preference basis. In case of varietal wheat matrix, again improved varieties were
at the top of priority list because of quality straw, good taste, more yield, less prone to disease,
longer ear head and more number of grains/ear head. Mundri was least preferred because yield
was less, it has a bad taste and gives a poor yield. Nishi was second, Kathi Safed was third and
Kathi Lal comes fourth on the preference basis.

Table 4.16 Rice varietal matrix

Varieties Mota Kala Safed Improved
Jhangora
Criteria Dhan Rikwa Rikwa Varieties
Less Time 5 5 4 2 2
Irrigation 5 4 4 3 2
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Less Fertilizer 5 4 4 3 2
Less Insect.,Pest. 5 4 4 2 1
Qualitative straw 2 3 3 5 4
Fine Grain 1 2 2 4 5
Good Taste 1 2 2 4 5
More Yield 1 2 3 4 5
Net Profit 1 2 2 4 5
Ranking II IV V III I

Table 4.17 Wheat varietals matrix

Kathi Improved
Crops Criteria Safed Kathi lal Mishri Mundri varieties
Less duration 5 4 3 4 2
Less water requirement 5 4 3 4 2
Less disease 4 2 3 3 5
Long earhead 2 3 4 3 5
More no. of grains /earheads 2 2 3 3 5
Length of awn 3 4 5 4 2
More straw 5 4 5 4 3
Quality straw 2 2 4 3 5
Good taste 4 4 5 3 5
More yield 1 2 4 2 5
Net profit 4 3 3 3 5
Ranking III IV II V I

Village amenities
. It was observed that the institutions like KVKs were important but located at distant
places. The infrastructure facilities like primary school, control shop, veterinary hospital, markets,
etc are located at proximity to residential areas.
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Fig 4.6 Village amenities of Hanswan

Wealth ranking
On the basis of information gathered, it was found that 50% of the total farmers belong to
medium income group, followed by high income group, which was 34.4% .Then comes low
income group which was equal to 4.5%.

Livelihood analysis of first group

On the basis of livelihood analysis, a first income group, it was analyzed that 90-95% of
their livelihood was earned from service and the rest 5-10% was earned from agricultural product.

Livelihood analysis of second group

After the study of second income group it was found that 75% of the people were earning
their livelihood through pension and rest 25% of the total livelihood they were earning from
agricultural products.
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Medium High Low Income

Income Income Group
Group Group (lease
(pension + (service+lea inland+own
agril. Prod.) se out land) land)

Fig 4.7 Wealth ranking

Livelihood analysis of third group

After the study it was found out that the third income group obtained 60% of their
livelihood from agricultural products, followed by 30% based in land’s production 10% of total
livelihood was obtained from animal products like milk and milk products.

Changes and trends

Over a period of time farmers’ perception changes and it was observed that there was a
greater interest shown by farmers for vegetables and horticultural crops which has grown nearly 4
times. Because of deforestation soil erosion has increased and was nearly 4 times of that was
prevelant 30 years back.. Irrigation requirement was more or less same and rainfall was
decreasing.

Table 4.17 : Changes and trends village Hanswan

Time period 30 years back 15 years back Present Future
Characters
Forest ***** **** ** **
Crop production ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆ ∆
Horticulture _ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣
Vegetables _ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
Fodder ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧ ٧
Irrigation ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬ ▬
Rainfall / / / / / / / / / / / / /
/ / / / / / / / / / / / /
/ / / / / / / / / / / / /
Erosion ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓ ▓

Agril. Tech. _ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞ ۞
Population ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺☺☺ ☺☺☺
Livestock ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂ ∂
Education ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪ ₪
Finanace $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $
availability
 Annual Progress Report 2008-09

Well being analysis

Because of the lack of time available to farmers, only few aspects like services, pensions
and agricultural land holding, assets like TV, radio and agricultural implements were taken into
account. On the basis of gathered information it was observed that 50 % of the villagers belonged
to medium income group followed by high income group i.e., 38.46 % and low income group
11.55 %. In first income group it was further observed that 90-95 % of their livelihood was
coming from agricultural products.
75 % of the earnings of the people of Hanswan come from pensions and the rest 25 % of
their total livelihood earned from agricultural productionIt was estimated that third income group
obtained 60 % livelihood from agricultural production followed by 30 % from land’s production.
Finally, the least amount i.e., 10 % of total livelihood comes from animal products like milk and
milk products. Through the PRA method we gather that with time people’s agricultural practices
have improved and so have their soicio-economic standards. There has been a marked
improvement in the crop yields and with that in their education levels of the people with improved
cultural practices.

CONCLUSIONS
Following were the conclusions drawn from the study :
1.Soil of the study area was found to have a texture varying from sandy loam to loamy sand and
sandy clay loam to loamy sand. The soils were found to be highly acidic in nature.
2. As far as the physico-chemical analysis of water is concerned ,the water from Hanswan village
spring was found to be slightly acidic that did not require any conventional treatment.
3.On studying the annual rainfall it was found that the rainfall was a maximum 48.8% during the
year 1999 and a minimum of 30.7% during the year 2001.
4. From the drought analysis , it was concluded that about 57% of the total number of months
were normal months . Most of the drought months had occurred in the post and pre-monsoon
periods. During the Rabi season i.e.,October to Feburary ,out of total 35 months , the number of
drought months worked out to be 54.28%.This indicates the failure of Rabi crops under rainfed
conditions.
5. The average family strength of the was 5.33 members . The average land holding villager was
0.1118 ha and average land holding /family member was 0.0275.
6. Hanswan village had 3.77% illiterate males as to 32.56 % illiterate females. The families had
an average land holding of 0.15 ha. Maximum average land holding /farmer family was 0.24 ha
and maximum average land holding /villager was 0.0025 ha.
7. Over a period of time, there was a greater interest shown by farmers for vegetables and
agricultural crops and for education by the villagers . Because of deforestation soil erosion had
increased .

REFERENCES
A.I.S.L.U.S.A. 1990. Watershed atlas of India, Department of Agriculture and co-operation. All
India soil and land use survey, IARI campus, New Delhi.
Sys, C., 1980. Land Evaluation Parts I, II & III. International training center for post- graduate
soil scientists, State University of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium.
Day, P. R. 1965. Particle fractionation and particle size analysis. Methods of soil analysis I: pp
545-566.
FAO 56, 1998. Crop Evapotranspiration - Guidelines for computing crop water requirements. Food
and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, Rome.