Why Are Traditional Irrigation Methods Becoming Less Efficient?

Blog by Atharva Mishra 

Abstract

In the world, India has more irrigated area than almost any other country, and sheds more water than almost anywhere. Traditional watering methods such as flood irrigation, furrow systems, and the pumping of water from borewells without monitoring were developed when water was abundant and land was not as intensively utilized. These practices, which are now more than inefficient, pose serious threats to the sustainability of Indian agriculture today, as rain water levels have dropped, farm inputs have increased and groundwater tables are depleting. This blog describes the reason why, and what farmers can do to address it.

The Scale of the Problem

The statistics are alarming. Today more than 85% of the irrigated land in India is under flood irrigation which only provides 30-40% of the water applied to the crops, with the remaining amount lost due to runoff, evaporation, and percolation. The overall irrigation operating efficiency in India is only 38% while that of the developed countries is 55%. India's share of unsustainable irrigation expansion was as high as 36% of the world total during 2000-15, according to a study published in Nature Water in 2024. The results are apparent in the water crisis in the groundwater. India is the world's largest user of ground water with an annual groundwater abstraction of almost 25% of the world's total. Almost 89% of all withdrawals are for irrigated agriculture, most of which are by flood irrigation. In Punjab and Haryana, the water tables have declined by 33% during the past 20 years. Several key agricultural states are potentially experiencing serious groundwater stress within their own generation.

Traditional vs. Modern Irrigation: Efficiency Compared

The table below compares the water efficiency of traditional irrigation methods with their modern alternatives — and highlights the core problem each method presents for Indian farmers today:

Why Traditional Methods Are Failing Now More Than Ever

In days gone past, the old irrigation arrangements were satisfactory when the rain was regularly and reliably distributed, the water table was relatively constant and the farms were smaller. These practices are becoming unsustainable for Indian farmers as the impact of three key forces grows. First, climate change is causing changes to the rainfall. Unpredictable monsoons force farmers to adopt alternative means to make up for the lack of efficiency in irrigation water application. Droughts and dry spells are occurring more often and for longer, and each litre of water has become more valuable. Under such situations, flood irrigation, with a water use efficiency of less than 60–70%, is justifiable. Second, as groundwater is depleted the pumping costs are increasing. With falling water levels, farmers need to dig deeper borewells and operate pumps for more hours to fetch the same amount of water, enhancing their electricity consumption and the maintenance charges of their pumps. If the pumps are not monitored and operated manually, this cycle of depletion can be sped up. Third, the increasing cost of agriculture as a result of the increased cost of the inputs to the production process means that a farmer is unable to afford the loss in productivity he incurs as a result of the fluctuations in water supplies. Water logging and root damage may occur due to over-irrigation and crop stress and loss of yield may occur due to under-irrigation. Traditional means is only guesswork.

Government of India’s Response: PMKSY and Smart Irrigation

Recognising the urgency of this crisis, the Government of India has made the transition away from traditional irrigation a national priority. The Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) — through its ‘Per Drop More Crop’ (PDMC) component — provides subsidies of 55% for small and marginal farmers and 45% for other farmers to adopt drip and sprinkler micro-irrigation systems. These modern systems achieve water efficiency of 85–95%, compared to 30–40% for flood irrigation. Over 96 lakh hectares have been covered under PDMC since 2015–16. For official PMKSY details:

The Digital Agriculture Mission, approved in September 2024 with an outlay of ₹2,817 crore, further supports the adoption of IoT-based irrigation monitoring, soil moisture sensors, and smart pump controllers — the tools that make precision irrigation possible at scale. For the official release:

For official irrigation statistics from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation:

Conclusion

Agriculture in India has been irrigated this way for many centuries – and it's a system that was designed for a time when there was more water, more predictable climate and lower costs. This world is no more. Poor wasteful use of water for the flood irrigation, unchecked use of borewells and leaky canal systems are no longer acceptable, but are existential risks. Going to smart, precision irrigation isn't just about conserving water. It's about saving Indian Farmers.

#IrrigationEfficiency  #TraditionalFarming  #IndianAgriculture  #WaterCrisis  #PMKSY  #SmartIrrigation  #GroundwaterDepletion  #AgriTech  #DigitalAgriculture