Role of State Government of Maharashtra, Central Government of India, and Non-Government Organizations in Watershed Management

Abstract

This research paper investigates the role of the State Government of Maharashtra, the Central Government of India, and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) in the context of watershed management. Watershed management is crucial for addressing water-related challenges and ensuring sustainable development. The paper delves into the policies, initiatives, and institutional frameworks implemented by the State Government, highlighting successful projects and acknowledging the challenges faced in watershed management. The Central Government's contributions, including schemes, funding, and a national perspective, are examined, with a focus on the impact on Maharashtra. NGOs play a pivotal role in community mobilization, technical expertise, and innovation. Community participation, stakeholder engagement, and technological interventions, such as GIS and remote sensing, are explored. Environmental and socioeconomic impacts, including improved water quality and enhanced livelihoods, are assessed through case studies. Ongoing challenges, recommendations for improvement, and future directions for research and innovation are identified. The paper concludes by emphasizing the collaborative role of the State Government, Central Government, NGOs, and local communities in achieving sustainable watershed management in Maharashtra, calling for continued cooperation to address evolving challenges and foster resilient watersheds.

Country : India

1 Mustaq Shaikh2 Farjana Birajdar

  1. Assistant Geologist, Groundwater Surveys and Development Agency, Solapur, Maharashtra, India
  2. Assistant Professor, School of Earth Sciences, Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Solapur University, Solapur, Maharashtra, India

IRJIET, Volume 8, Issue 2, February 2024 pp. 109-122

doi.org/10.47001/IRJIET/2024.802016

References

  1. A.Fenta, H. Yasuda, K. Shimizu, Nigussie Haregeweyn and A. Negussie. "Dynamics of Soil Erosion as Influenced by Watershed Management Practices: A Case Study of the Agula Watershed in the Semi-Arid Highlands of Northern Ethiopia." Environmental Management, Vol. 58: pp. 889-905, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-016-0757-4.
  2. R. Stedman, Brian Lee, K. Brasier, J. Weigle and Francis X. Higdon. "Cleaning up water? Or building rural community? Community watershed organizations in Pennsylvania.." Rural Sociology, Vol. 74: pp. 178-200, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1549-0831.2009.TB00388.X.
  3. JialiQiu, Zhenyao Shen, G. Leng and Guoyuan Wei. "Synergistic effect of drought and rainfall events of different patterns on watershed systems." Scientific Reports, Vol. 11, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-97574-z.
  4. S. Bhan. "Land degradation and integrated watershed management in India." International Soil and Water Conservation Research, Vol. 1,pp. 49-57, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2095-6339(15)30049-6.
  5. Kumari, Sneha, et al. "An Approach to Sustainable Watershed Management: Case Studies on Enhancing Sustainability with Challenges of Water in Western Maharashtra." Waste Management: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications, edited by Information Resources Management Association, IGI Global, pp. 286-305, 2020. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-1210-4.ch013
  6. G. Kale, V. Manekar and P. D. Porey. "Watershed development project justification by economic evaluation: a case study of Kachhighati Watershed in Aurangabad District, Maharashtra." ISH Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, Vol. 18,pp. 101 – 111, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1080/09715010.2012.662448.
  7. A. Narayanamoorthy and K. G. Kshirsagar. "Watershed or command area?: An evaluation of watershed project in Maharashtra." ArthaVijnana: Journal of The Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Vol. 44,pp. 253-290, 2002. https://doi.org/10.21648/ARTHAVIJ/2002/V44/I3-4/115813.
  8. Jayanath Ananda and W. Proctor. "Collaborative approaches to water management and planning: An institutional perspective." Ecological Economics, Vol. 86,pp. 97-106, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.ECOLECON.2012.10.018.
  9. Rupesh Devale, Thool Kushal P and Seema A. Jagtap. "Conservation Strategies Using Watershed Management and Rainwater Harvesting." International Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Vol. 4, 2017.
  10. A. Narayanamoorthy and K. G. Kshirsagar. "Watershed or command area?: An evaluation of watershed project in Maharashtra." ArthaVijnana: Journal of The Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Vol. 44,pp. 253-290, 2002. https://doi.org/10.21648/ARTHAVIJ/2002/V44/I3-4/115813.
  11. D. G. Durbude. "Hydrological impact assessment of SWC measures in Ralegaon Siddhi model watershed." Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, Vol. 43,pp. 197-203, 2015.
  12. Trupti Rathod and M. K. Rathod. "Impact of integrated watershed management programme on yield and economic parameters of farmers in Wardha district." Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, Vol. 45,pp. 117-122, 2017.
  13. Arjun Doke. "Agrotourism is an Immerging field of Sustainable Development for Rural Area: A case study of Bhor Tahsil of Maharashtra." International Research Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, Vol. 2 2016.
  14. J. Mosaffaie and Amin Salehpour Jam. "Economic assessment of the investment in soil and water conservation projects of watershed management." Arabian Journal of Geosciences, Vol. 11,pp. 1-10, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-018-3706-0.
  15. Zubair Sharif, L. T. Jung, Imran Razzak and M. Alazab. "Adaptive and Priority-Based Resource Allocation for Efficient Resources Utilization in Mobile-Edge Computing." IEEE Internet of Things Journal, Vol. 10,pp. 3079-3093, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2021.3111838.
  16. N. Kunz. "Catchment-based water management in the mining industry: Challenges and solutions." The Extractive Industries and Society, Vol. 3,pp. 972-977, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EXIS.2016.10.012.
  17. A. Said, G. Sehlke, D. Stevens, T. Glover, D. Sorensen, W. Walker and T. Hardy. "Exploring an innovative watershed management approach: From feasibility to sustainability." Energy, Vol. 31,pp. 2373-2386, 2006. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.ENERGY.2006.02.002.
  18. Kundu, S., Khare, D., & Mondal, A., “Individual and combined impacts of future climate and land use changes on the water balance. Ecological Engineering”, Vol. 105, pp. 42-57, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.ECOLENG.2017.04.061.
  19. R. Deshpande and N. Rajasekaran. "Impact of Watershed Development Programme: Experiences and Issues." ArthaVijnana: Journal of The Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Vol. 39,pp. 374-390, 1997. https://doi.org/10.21648/ARTHAVIJ/1997/V39/I3/115956.
  20. M. England. "India’s water policy response to climate change." Water International, Vol. 43,pp. 512 – 530, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1080/02508060.2018.1450569.
  21. Nigussie Haregeweyn, A. Berhe, A. Tsunekawa, M. Tsubo and D. Meshesha. "Integrated Watershed Management as an Effective Approach to Curb Land Degradation: A Case Study of the Enabered Watershed in Northern Ethiopia." Environmental Management, Vol. 50,pp. 1219-1233, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-012-9952-0.
  22. J. Rockström, J. Barron and P. Fox. "Rainwater management for increased productivity among small-holder farmers in drought prone environments." Physics and Chemistry of The Earth, Vol. 27, pp.  949-959, 2002. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-7065(02)00098-0.
  23. N. Ramakrishna. "Production System Planning for Natural Resource Conservation in a Micro-Watershed." Electronic Green Journal, Vol. 1,pp. 2. https://doi.org/10.5070/G311810507.
  24. Siddu Badakuri and N. Manjula. "Source of Irrigation, Cropping System Adopted and Mass Media Exposure of Beneficiary and Non-beneficiary Farmers under Pradhan Mantri krishi Sinchayee Yojana at Belagavi District of Karnataka State." International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences, Vol. 9,pp. 1310-1316, 2020. https://doi.org/10.20546/IJCMAS.2020.912.161.
  25. Kartik Misra. "Does historical land inequality attenuate the positive impact of India’s employment guarantee program?." World Development, Vol. 124, pp. 104662, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.104662.
  26. J. Kerr, G. Milne, Vasudha Chhotray, P. Baumann and A. J. James. "Managing Watershed Externalities in India: Theory and Practice." Environment, Development and Sustainability, Vol. 9,pp. 263-281, 2007. https://doi.org/10.1007/S10668-005-9022-3.
  27. R. Margerum and C. Robinson. "Collaborative partnerships and the challenges for sustainable water management." Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, Vol. 12,pp. 53-58, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COSUST.2014.09.003.
  28. I. Ferguson and R. Maxwell. "Human impacts on terrestrial hydrology: climate change versus pumping and irrigation." Environmental Research Letters, Vol.7 2012. https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044022.
  29. C. H. Wadleigh and A. D. Ayers. "GROWTH AND BIOCHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF BEAN PLANTS AS CONDITIONED BY SOIL MOISTURE TENSION AND SALT CONCENTRATION.." Plant physiology, Vol. 20,pp. 106-32, 1945. https://doi.org/10.1104/PP.20.1.106.
  30. Smita Gate. "Empowerment of Women in Watershed Management." Indian Journal of Gender Studies, Vol. 8,pp. 247 – 256, 2001. https://doi.org/10.1177/097152150100800206.
  31. G. L. Bagdi and R. Kurothe. "People’s participation in watershed management programmes: Evaluation study of Vidarbha region of Maharashtra in India." International Soil and Water Conservation Research, Vol. 2,pp. 57-66, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2095-6339(15)30023-X.
  32. Richard D. Margerum * and Debra Whitall. "The challenges and implications of collaborative management on a river basin scale." Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Vol. 47,pp. 409 – 429, 2004. https://doi.org/10.1080/0964056042000216537.
  33. Li Qianxiang, Kennedy N. Igbokwe and Li Jiayong. "Community-Based Integrated Watershed Management." Chinese Journal of Population Resources and Environment, Vol. 3,pp. 60 – 64, 2005. https://doi.org/10.1080/10042857.2005.10677407.
  34. R. Stedman, Brian Lee, K. Brasier, J. Weigle and Francis X. Higdon. "Cleaning up water? Or building rural community? Community watershed organizations in Pennsylvania.." Rural Sociology, Vol. 74,pp. 178-200, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1111/J.1549-0831.2009.TB00388.X.
  35. Lorne Owen, W. Howard and M. Waldron. "Conflicts Over Farming Practices in Canada: The Role of Interactive Conflict Resolution Approaches." Journal of Rural Studies, Vol. 16,pp. 475-483, 2000. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0743-0167(00)00023-1.
  36. V. Tsihrintzis, Rizwana Hamid and H. Fuentes. "Use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in water resources: A review." Water Resources Management, Vol. 10,pp. 251-277, 1996. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00508896.
  37. Ian L Turner, Mitchell D. Harley and C. Drummond. "UAVs for coastal surveying." Coastal Engineering, Vol. 114, pp. 19-24, 2016. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COASTALENG.2016.03.011.
  38. I. Calder, A. Gosain, M. Rao, C. Batchelor, J. Garratt and E. Bishop. "Watershed development in India. 2. New approaches for managing externalities and meeting sustainability requirements." Environment, Development and Sustainability, Vol. 10,pp. 427-440, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1007/S10668-006-9073-0.
  39. R. Lizotte, S. Knight, M. Locke and R. Bingner. "Influence of integrated watershed-scale agricultural conservation practices on lake water quality." Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, Vol. 69,pp. 160 – 170, 2014. https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.69.2.160.
  40. Tingting Duan, Jiashen Feng, Yanqing Zhou, X. Chang and Yingxia Li. "Systematic evaluation of management measure effects on the water environment based on the DPSIR-Tapio decoupling model: A case study in the Chaohu Lake watershed, China.." The Science of the total environment, Vol. 801,pp. 149528, 2021 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.149528.
  41. Philip B. Williams. "Adapting water resources management to global climate change." Climatic Change, Vol. 15 (1989): 83-93. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00138847.
  42. Nigussie Haregeweyn, A. Berhe, A. Tsunekawa, M. Tsubo and D. Meshesha. "Integrated Watershed Management as an Effective Approach to Curb Land Degradation: A Case Study of the Enabered Watershed in Northern Ethiopia." Environmental Management, Vol. 50,pp. 1219-1233, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-012-9952-0.
  43. Xin Li, N. Zhao, Rui Jin, Shaomin Liu, Xiaomin Sun, X. Wen, Dongxiu Wu, Yan Zhou, Jianwen Guo, Shiping Chen, Ziwei Xu, M. Ma, T. Wang, Y. Qu, Xinwei Wang, Fangming Wu and Yuke Zhou. "Internet of Things to network smart devices for ecosystem monitoring.." Science bulletin, Vol. 64,pp. 1234-1245, 2019. . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scib.2019.07.004.
  44. Mustaq Shaikh., Farjana Birajdar. “Groundwater Awareness Using Various IEC Tools in ABY at Solapur District”. International Journal for Research Trends and Innovation Vol 8 Issue 9, September-2023. 10.6084/m9.doione.IJRTI2309002
  45. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Analysis of watershed characteristics using remote sensing and GIS techniques”. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology. Vol.4 issue 4, pp 1971-1976, 2015.DOI: 10.15680/IJIRSET.2015.0404023.
  46. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar..“Anticipation of Water Scarcity Impacted Areas and Duration: A Case Study of Osmanabad District, Maharashtra, India”. International Journal of Latest Technology in Engineering, Management & Applied Science. Volume IV, Issue III, pp.1-5, 2015.
  47. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar..“Water Scarcity in Solapur: Mitigation Strategies and Sustainable Planning. International Journal of Innovative Science, Engineering & Technology, Vol. 11 Issue 01, pp. 56-71, 2024.
  48. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Ensuring Purity and Health: A Comprehensive  Study of Water Quality Testing Labs in Solapur District for Community Well-being”. International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology, Volume 9, Issue 1, pp. 271-281. 2024https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10622956
  49. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Mapping of feasibility of groundwater for drinking water zones of Akkalkot Taluk, Solapur, India using GIS techniques”. International Journal of Science and Research. Volume 4 Issue 4, pp. 1709-1713, 2015.
  50. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Mapping of Water Scarce Zones of Osmanabad District by Analysis of Groundwater Levels and Rainfall”. International Journal of Innovations in Engineering and Technology. Volume 5 Issue 2, pp.254-262, 2015.
  51. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Groundwater management and sustainable farming practices: a socioeconomic analysis of their interplay in rural agriculture - a case study of Solapur, Maharashtra”. International Journal for Innovative Science Research Trends and Innovation Vol 8 Issue 9, pp. 1543-1551, 2023. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8402903.
  52. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Artificial intelligence in groundwater management: Innovations, challenges, and future prospects”. International Journal of Science and Research Archive, 11(01), pp. 502–512, 2024.
  53. Shaikh Mustaq, Herlekar, M. A. and Umrikar B. N. “Appraisal of Groundwater Artificial Recharge Zones in Basaltic Terrain of Upper Yerala River basin, India”. Journal of Geosciences Research Challenges in Groundwater and Surface water in India Special volume 2. 2019 pp 29-36, 2019.
  54. Mustaq Shaikh and Farjana Birajdar. “Groundwater assessment and feasibility of artificial recharge structures on over-exploited miniwatersheds of MR-12, Osmanabad district”. International Conference on Technologies for Sustainable Development (ICTSD), Mumbai, India, pp. 1-5, 2015,doi: 10.1109/ICTSD.2015.7095916.
  55. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Groundwater depletion in agricultural regions: causes, consequences, and sustainable management: a case study of basaltic terrain of Solapur district”. EPRA International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (IJMR), Vol. 10 Issue. 2, pp. 237-242,2024.
  56. M. A. J. Shaikh and F. Birajdar, “Water Harvesting: Importance and Techniques for Mitigating Drought in Solapur District”, IJRESM, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 74–83, Feb. 2024.
  57. Mustaq Shaikh and Farjana Birajdar, “Harmony in Hydroinformatics: Integrating AI and IEC for sustainable groundwater conservation in Solapur”, International Journal of Science and Research Archive, 11(01), pp. 2163–2175, 2024.
  58. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. “Advancing Sustainable Water Management in Solapur through Continuous Groundwater Monitoring with Piezometers and Automatic Water Level Recorders: Insights from the Atal Bhujal Yojana”. International Journal for Innovative Science Research Trends and Innovation Vol 9 Issue 2, pp. 230-239, 2024. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8402903.
  59. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. "Enhancing groundwater awareness through exhibitions: a case study of Atal BhujalYojana in Solapur", International Journal of Novel Research and Development, Vol.8, Issue 12, page no.e81-e91, 2023, http://www.ijnrd.org/papers/IJNRD2312409.pdf
  60. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. "GIS-based multi-criteria evaluation techniques for demarcation of solid waste disposal site locations in Solapur city, Maharashtra, India". International Journal of Novel Research and Development, Vol.8, Issue 4, pp. c516-c523, 2023.
  61. Mustaq Shaikh, Farjana Birajdar. "Mapping of Flood Risk Zones of Chandrabhaga River Around the Pilgrim City of Pandharpur by Using Remote Sensing, DEM and GIS Techniques". International Journal of Science and Research, Vol.4, Issue 4, pp. 513-515, 2015.