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economics of on-farm development - Institute for Social and ...

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it also obstructed the process <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>development</strong> in the state causing largescale<br />

capacity under-utilisati<strong>on</strong> in the case <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> completed irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects <strong>and</strong> n<strong>on</strong>-<br />

. .<br />

completi<strong>on</strong> coupled with time <strong>and</strong> cost overruns in the case <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>on</strong>going schemes.<br />

5.2.2 Impact <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong>: a disaggregate analysis<br />

In what follows, we examine the impact <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> the per<strong>for</strong>mance <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> some <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

the important crops targeted to be grown in irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects. As menti<strong>on</strong>ed<br />

already. paddy is the major crop targeted in all the irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects, except the<br />

Kallada scheme. Coc<strong>on</strong>ut, banana, arecanut <strong>and</strong> horticultural crops are the other<br />

crops c<strong>on</strong>sidered to yield better under irrigated c<strong>on</strong>diti<strong>on</strong>s 2o . Most <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the other<br />

commercial crops are rain fed. Though life saving irrigati<strong>on</strong> during summer m<strong>on</strong>ths<br />

is recommended to some <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the plantati<strong>on</strong> crops, it is not generally practised<br />

primarily due to: a) the wider belief that thC'se crops could thrive under rainfed<br />

c<strong>on</strong>diti<strong>on</strong>s: b) n<strong>on</strong>-availability <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> water sources in most <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the plantati<strong>on</strong> tracts: c)<br />

<strong>development</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> requiring massIve investment in terms <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> l<strong>and</strong><br />

<strong>development</strong>. installati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> systems; <strong>and</strong> d) labour being scarce <strong>and</strong><br />

highly expensive.<br />

As expected, the reported l<strong>and</strong> utilisati<strong>on</strong> pattern in the ayacuts <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the completed<br />

irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects in the state is dominated by paddy, followed mostly by coc<strong>on</strong>ut<br />

J? A~ eC()Il()mic lllaximiLcrs, Kerala's <strong>farm</strong>ers have resp<strong>on</strong>ded to shifting price signals by<br />

reallocating their resources from paddy to more lucrative crops (Heller, 1999: 124).<br />

163

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