Rejuvenation of Water Tanks
and Sustainable Farming Practices
Development
Alternatives under the Marico project has initiated the work of tank
deepening in the villages of Niwari block in Bundelkhand, one of the
most drought prone regions in India. One such village is Ubora.
Due to
water crisis in the village, there were no healthy water bodies due to
which farmers were facing a lot of problems for agricultural activities.
The Gochar tank was chosen for rejuvenation. With the agreement of
Sarpanch and farmers living around the tank, the Development
Alternatives (DA) team started the work of tank deepening and cleaning
on 5th June 2020. JCB machine was used for deepening of the tank. During
this process, soil was extracted and was given to farmers for use in
their fields. The DA team also advised farmers that they should use this
soil for making bunds around their fields as this will check soil
erosion. Also since the soil is rich in nutrients and quality, it will
enhance plant growth in their fields.
Farmers
were also given forestry plants such as Bamboo, Neem, Shisham, Teek and
Drum Stick to plant on their fields. Also, seeds of Jawar and Bajra (4
kg each) were given to the farmers to sow in 1-acre area. The farmers
sowed the seeds and also used vermi compost in their fields to promote
natural, pesticide free farming.
With this,
at the time of monsoon, the tank was filled with rainwater which
increased the ground water level in the village. Domestic animals could
drink water from the tank. Farmers were happy as they could use this
water in their fields.
Rain water
harvesting and ground water recharge along with growing millets and
other crops that require less water is the way forward for all India’s
villages.
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Lalit Kumar Gangwar
lkgangwar@devalt.org
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