Beneficiary Participation in Irrigation Water Management: The Kerala

To the question whether irrigation issues were discussed in the general body, about twothirds
of the members pleaded ignorance. About one-fourth of the members were, however,
of the view that all irrigation issues were discussed in the general body in order to arrive at
pragmatic solutions to problems. Interestingly, one-third of the members who expressed
this view were themselves office-bearers. In brief, responses of the respondents, the
documentary evidences from the minutes of the general body meetings, and the observations
of the research team lead to the conclusion that irrigation issues are not discussed in general
body meetings, with as much seriousness as they really should receive.
Surprisingly as many as 31 BFAs, out of a total 45 in the sample, did not have minutes of
general body meetings at all; even out of the 14 BFAs which had, only six had minutes
maintained in the proper form.
In brief, a large section of BFA members was in favour of holding general body meetings
before the commencement of every crop season. This was seldom done. As a rule, the BFA
leadership was not interested in summoning the general body and facing the members.
Whenever the general body was held, it appears that the place, time, and convenience of
OMs to attend, were not given due consideration. Participation in the few general body
meetings held was, for the office-bearers and the ordinary members, more of a ritual than
serious business.
Canal Committees (CC)
The Canal Committee is perhaps the most strategic part of irrigation management since
much of the success in the working of BFAs depends on its effective functioning. As the coordinator
of BFAs, and as an agency that takes important policy decisions, it sets the pace at
which BFAs operate and achieve the goals of decentralisation and democratisation aimed at
by CADA Act of 1986. The salient items of information collected from the minutes of CCs
in the sample are given in Tables 4.7 and 4.8.
Formation
It appears that Canal Committees were first constituted in Malampuzha for the left bank
canal the Kottayi–Peringottukurissi; its first meeting was held on 29 July 1987. For the
next year-and-a- half, no other committee was formed. On 14 March 1989, two Canal
Committees, Kannadi-Odannur, and Kannannur-Pulinelli, were formed and they held
their first meetings the same day. The CADA authorities took, however, nearly 18
months to give approval to these two Canal Committees. The next wave of formation
came after a span of full five years, when the Erimayour-Kunnissery Committees were
summoned for their first meeting on 26 April 1994. Formation of Committees for the
Right Bank Canal began only in 1994. The first of them viz. Kinavalloor-Mankara
Committee was formed on 25 October 1994; then came Palappuram, and Kavilappad-
Vallikodeu with intervals of about a year in-between. The delays involved in the formation
of committees is an indication enough of indifference in the implementation of the
entire scheme of decentralisation of power and functions, downwards from irrigation
officials to beneficiary farmers.
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