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

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cosl <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>development</strong> increased from Rs. 0.06 lakhs to 0.23 lakhs per ha. Though the<br />

<strong>development</strong> cost <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> minor irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects works out to be less than that <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> major<br />

irrigati<strong>on</strong> project, it cannot be reck<strong>on</strong>ed as the true <strong>development</strong> cost as it does not<br />

include the private <strong>farm</strong> level investments by individual farrners 26 .<br />

Thus, cost escalati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> spill-over in time accounts <strong>for</strong> the important dnig<br />

<strong>on</strong> the per<strong>for</strong>mance <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects in the state. There have been many studies<br />

examining the various aspects <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> cost escalati<strong>on</strong>, time over-runs <strong>and</strong> related issues in<br />

the irrigati<strong>on</strong> projects highlighting the magnitude <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the problem in Kerala am<strong>on</strong>g<br />

the 'other states (GOL 1973; Pant, 1982; Swaminathan 1990; Singh, 1997) as well as<br />

in Kerala's specific c<strong>on</strong>text (KSSP, 1988; Netto, 1990; Viswanathan 1997, 2000).<br />

Swami nathan (1990) shows that Kerala had the highest cost escalati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> 675 per<br />

cent up to 1988. The reas<strong>on</strong>s <strong>for</strong> cost escalati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> time lag are many <strong>and</strong> varied 27<br />

Netto (1990) finds that the rise in cost <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> labour <strong>and</strong> materials c<strong>on</strong>stituted the largest<br />

item (45.78%), followed by inadequate financial provisi<strong>on</strong> (22.61 %), l<strong>and</strong> cost<br />

(17.25%), change in design (8.98%) <strong>and</strong> inadequate investigati<strong>on</strong> (5.38%). Further,<br />

26 Dhawan (1989) holds that major irrigati<strong>on</strong> scores over minor irrigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> various counts.<br />

For instance, surface irrigati<strong>on</strong> works may score over well irrigati<strong>on</strong> by a margin <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> 3:2.<br />

Moreover, major works use the natural <strong>for</strong>ce <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> gravity in their operati<strong>on</strong>, while minor<br />

works require energy <strong>for</strong> water lifting. which involves substantial investment.<br />

27 These factors include the rise in prices, inadequate investigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> provisi<strong>on</strong>s, change<br />

in the scope <strong>and</strong> design, l<strong>and</strong> acquisiti<strong>on</strong>, rehabilitati<strong>on</strong> measures <strong>and</strong> poor per<strong>for</strong>mance <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

equipments, etc (GOI, 1973). Besides, the tendency to start too many projects results in<br />

proliferati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> projects, thin spreading <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> resource, c<strong>on</strong>structi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> water courses,<br />

allocati<strong>on</strong> <strong>for</strong> preservati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> envir<strong>on</strong>ment <strong>and</strong> ecology <strong>and</strong> adopti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> more sophisticated<br />

175

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