Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer
Plant Science Today (PST)

Research Articles

Vol. 13 No. sp2 (2026): Recent Advances in Agriculture

Assessing water use efficiency to evaluate economic performance across tank and groundwater irrigation systems

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.11086
Submitted
4 August 2025
Published
04-06-2026

Abstract

This study investigates the economic and socio-economic performance of three distinct irrigation systems: Farmers managed tank irrigation through Water Users Association (WUA), Water Resource Department (WRD)-managed tanks and groundwater irrigation (control area) in Pudukkottai district, Tamil Nadu. A sample of 240 farmers was selected equally from these three systems and extensive data were collected on household profiles, landholding patterns, asset and livestock inventories, water use efficiency (WUE), income sources, employment and total asset value. The analysis reveals that WUA-managed tank irrigation systems demonstrated superior outcomes in WUE, economic returns and employment generation compared to WRD-managed and groundwater-based systems. Paddy cultivation under WUA tanks recorded the highest WUE (263.60 kg m-3), significantly outperforming WRD tanks (117.37 kg m-3) and groundwater irrigation (189.35 kg m-3). Socio-economically, WUA and groundwater systems were characterised by a predominance of joint families and larger average landholdings, while WRD-managed systems showed higher proportions of nuclear families and small farmers. Annual income, asset value and employment generation were highest in the WUA-managed areas, pointing to the effectiveness of participatory irrigation management (PIM). In contrast, WRD systems showed relatively poorer performance in water productivity and employment, indicating issues in governance and institutional engagement. The groundwater system, while offering moderate performance, reflected higher reliance on livestock and groundwater infrastructure due to the lack of surface irrigation support.

References

  1. 1. Adhikari R, Singh A, Math S, Raizada A, Mishra P, Reddy K. Augmentation of groundwater recharge and water quality improvement by water harvesting structures in the semi-arid Deccan. Curr Sci. 2013;105:1534–42.
  2. 2. Alexander JJ, Mahalingam B. Sustainable tank irrigation: An irrigation water quality perspective. Indian J Sci Technol. 2011;4(1):22–6. https://doi.org/10.17485/ijst/2011/v4i1.5
  3. 3. Amarnath J, Saranya S. An economic analysis of sustainability in Namakkal district of Tamil Nadu. Wyno Acad J Agric Sci. 2014;2(1):1–18.
  4. 4. Ashok K, Sasikala C. Farmers’ vulnerability to rainfall variability and technology adoption in rain-fed tank irrigated agriculture. Agric Econ Res Rev. 2012;25(2):267–78. https://doi.org/10.1177/0971344120120208
  5. 5. Banks E, Simmons C, Love A, Shand P. Assessing spatial and temporal connectivity between surface water and groundwater in a regional catchment: Implications for regional-scale water quantity and quality. J Hydrol. 2011;404(1-2):30–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2011.04.017
  6. 6. Bortolini L, Maucieri C, Borin M. A tool for the evaluation of irrigation water quality in the arid and semi-arid regions. Agronomy. 2018;8(2):23. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy8020023
  7. 7. Farid I, Abbas M, Bassouny M, Gameel A, Abbas H. Indirect impacts of irrigation with low-quality water on the environmental safety. Egypt J Soil Sci. 2020;60(1):1−15. https://doi.org/10.21608/ejss.2019.15434.1294
  8. 8. Feleke E, Assefa E, Zeleke T. Effects of small-scale irrigation on household income and its implications for livelihood sustainability in the drought-prone Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. J Sustain Dev Afr. 2020;22(1):1–12.
  9. 9. Heathwaite A. Multiple stressors on water availability at global to catchment scales: Understanding human impact on nutrient cycles to protect water quality and water availability in the long term. Freshw Biol. 2010;55:241–57. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2427.2009.02368.x
  10. 10. Helmus A, Fernald A, VanLeeuwen D, Abbott L, Ulery A, Baker T. Surface water seepage effects on shallow ground-water quality along the Rio Grande in Northern New Mexico. J Am Water Resour Assoc. 2009;45(2):407–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-1688.2008.00293.x
  11. 11. Kajisa K, Palanisami K, Sakurai T. Effects on poverty and equity of the decline in collective tank irrigation management in Tamil Nadu, India. Agric Econ. 2007;36(3):347–62. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-0862.2007.00212.x
  12. 12. Krishna Kumar S, Hari Babu S, Eswar Rao P, Selvakumar S, Thivya C, Muralidharan S, et al. Evaluation of water quality and hydrogeochemistry of surface and groundwater, Tiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu, India. Appl Water Sci. 2017;7(5):2533–44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13201-016-0447-7
  13. 13. Legesse L, Ayele A, Tasewu W, Alemu A. Impact of small scale irrigation on household farm income and asset holding: Evidence from Shebedino District, Southern Ethiopia. J Resour Dev Manag. 2018;43(1):24–36.
  14. 14. Li J, Ma W, Renwick A, Zheng H. The impact of access to irrigation on rural incomes and diversification: Evidence from China. China Agric Econ Rev. 2020;12(4):705–25. https://doi.org/10.1108/CAER-09-2019-0172
  15. 15. Molden D, Burton M, Bos M. Performance assessment, irrigation service delivery and poverty reduction: Benefits of improved system management. Irrig Drain. 2007;56(2–3):307–20. https://doi.org/10.1002/ird.313
  16. 16. Palanisami K, Flinn J. Evaluating the performance of tank irrigation systems. Agric Syst. 1988;28(3):161–77. https://doi.org/10.1016/0308-521X(88)90049-2
  17. 17. Palanisami K, Flinn J. Impact of varying water supply on input use and yields of tank-irrigated rice. Agric Water Manag. 1989;15(4):347–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-3774(89)90051-6
  18. 18. Prabhakaran R, Seetharaman S. Evaluation of groundwater suitability for irrigation and drinking purposes in the Olakkur block, Villupuram district, Tamil Nadu, India. J Appl Geochem. 2020;22(2):153–8.
  19. 19. Sakurai T, Palanisami K. Tank irrigation management as a local common property: The case of Tamil Nadu, India. Agric Econ. 2001;25(2-3):273–83. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-0862.2001.tb00207.x
  20. 20. Sharif M, Ashok K. Impact of groundwater over-draft on farm income and efficiency in crop production. Agric Econ Res Rev. 2011;24(2):291–300. https://doi.org/10.1177/0971344120110212
  21. 21. Sivasubramaniyan K. Performance of irrigation in Tamil Nadu: A macro perspective. Chennai: Madras Inst Dev Stud; 2016.
  22. 22. Randhir OT. Productivity variation and water use in farms of the Madurantakam tank-fed area of Chengalpattu district, Tamil Nadu. Indian J Agric Econ. 1990;45(1):59.
  23. 23. Van Oel PR, Mulatu DW, Odongo VO, Meins FM, Hogeboom RJ, Becht R, et al. The effects of groundwater and surface water use on total water availability and implications for water management: The case of Lake Naivasha, Kenya. Water Resour Manag. 2013;27(9):3477–92. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-013-0359-3
  24. 24. Zhou Q, Deng X, Wu F, Li Z, Song W. Participatory irrigation management and irrigation water use efficiency in maize production: Evidence from Zhangye City, Northwestern China. Water. 2017;9(11):822. https://doi.org/10.3390/w9110822
  25. 25. Kumar N, Singh A, Bansal N. Evaluating the performance of participatory irrigation management in semi-arid regions of India: A case study of WUAs. Water Policy. 2022;24(3):345–60.
  26. 26. Tiwari P, Bekele S. Community-driven irrigation governance and equity outcomes in smallholder systems. Int J Water Resour Dev. 2021;37(7):1120–38.
  27. 27. Narayanamoorthy A. Revitalizing tank irrigation institutions: Policy reforms for efficient water governance in India. Irrig Drain. 2023;72(1):45–59.
  28. 28. Ali M, Rahman S. Determinants of water-use efficiency in smallholder rice cultivation under climate variability. Agric Water Manag. 2022;268:107658.
  29. 29. Devaraj R, Palanisami K. Assessing WUE in tank-fed paddy systems: Evidence from Tamil Nadu. J Water Clim Change. 2021;12(6):2280–91.
  30. 30. Saravanan V, Jayakumar M. Surface–groundwater interactions in tank-irrigated landscapes and implications for sustainability. Hydrol Sci J. 2023;68(2):314–28.
  31. 31. Bronson K, Ghosh A. Reimagining tank irrigation for climate-resilient agriculture in South Asia. Environ Res Lett. 2024;19(1):015004.
  32. 32. Choudhary R, Raghav P. Collective action for sustainable water governance: Lessons from farmer-led institutions. Water Int. 2024;49(2):203–21.
  33. 33. Aryal J, Gautam D. Community water management and institutional effectiveness in irrigation command areas. Sustainability. 2022;14(4):2239.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.