Aspects of Tank Irrigated Agrarian Economy in Tamil Nadu, India : A Study of Three Villages

Abstract

Agriculture which plays a crucial role in providing employment opportunities for rural poor in Tamil Nadu is drastically declining as profitability and dependability of doing agriculture is getting reduced due to various risk associated with it. The prime most risk is availability of water and inputs. Because of irrigation water shortage average yield was about 30 – 35 percent lower in rainfed farming than irrigated farming. Considering the frequent aberration of rainfall, the state provided with numerous numbers (40,319) of irrigation tanks constructed in ancient times to conserve and store the rainfall and later it is used for irrigation and other domestic uses. Deterioration of these irrigation tanks due to various socio-economic, political and institutional factors adversely affect the livelihood opportunities of the rural people in Tamil Nadu. This paper primarily aims to understand first, the social class structure of farming community, the constraints imposed by it on paddy production and its effects on indebtedness of farmers in Tamil Nadu. Secondly, it attempts to identify the role of tank irrigation system on the agricultural production and the livelihood opportunities of the villages in Tamil Nadu. It provides empirical information about socio-economic and institutional factors responsible for deterioration of tank system and livelihood strategies employed by the local people as a result of deterioration of irrigation water resources. This is based on our field survey on 195 farm households in 3 villages in Madurai district of Tamil Nadu. It concludes households in the rural Tamil Nadu have differing in asset endowment and livelihood strategies. Opportunities for off farm work tend to be limited in these areas and household strategies that combine on farm with off farm work earn higher income. Abandon of traditional way of management of tanks and structural changes happened within and between social classes at the village level is the possible reason for deterioration of irrigation tanks.