Haryana Community Forestry Project

Water Harvesting Structure

An impact assessment of one of the first dams constructed by the project (Bharauli), focusing on increased crop and milk yield, has been carried out, showing that all costs of construction and farmer investments have been recovered by increased crop and milk yield through year-round irrigation after only 3½ years of the establishment of the dam. The economic life of the dam is expected to be at least 25 years.

Also the landless have benefited from invigorated village economy after irrigation. The 20 landless families of Bharauli have increased their income from farm labour four times compared to pre-irrigation baseline, they have doubled their ownership of cattle, half of them now have subsidiary occupations as against only one family before, 83% live in brick houses compared to only 10% four years ago.

In another village surveyed (Mirpur), the monetary value of all crops increased 2.7 times in the second year of irrigation as compared to the pre-irrigation baseline. Wheat remains the major crop, with doubled yield, while oilseeds and pulses earlier raised have to a large extent been replaced by more profitable onion crops (onion + onion seed) – production value rose from Rs. 7,000 to Rs. 260,000. Fodder production has increased six times.