ICSE

Class 10

Water Resources
(Part- 1)
Let’s practice slide
 OUR WATER RESOURCES - SURFACE WATER AND GROUND WATER
(a) India is a land of rich natural resources

(b) Need water for agriculture as well as industry

(c) Water is stored in reservoirs behind dams to supply water to villages and cities

(d) Demand for water is increasing rapidly

(e) India occupies only 2.45% of world's surface

area, 16% of the world's population ,4% of the

world's water resources

OUR WATER RESOURCES - SURFACE WATER AND GROUND WATER
(f) We receive plenty of water in the short rainy season

Main Source of water

(i) Surface water

(ii) Groundwater

(iii) Lagoons and backwater

 Surface water Resources in India
• Rainfall is the main source of fresh water
• From precipitation alone (including snowfall),
India receives 4000 km³ (billion cubic metre)
• Surface water is available on the surface of the
earth in the form of rivers, lakes, ponds, and canals
• Major rivers, the Ganga, Brahmaputra- meghna
system is the biggest with catchment area
• Most of the Himalayan rivers are large and originate in the snow covered high
altitude areas of the Himalayan ranges
• In contrast the rivers of the peninsular India
 (ii) Groundwater
"The part of rainwater that seeps through the cracks and crevices into the ground is
called groundwater”
• Represents one of the most important water source
• The distribution of groundwater is very uneven in India
• Presence and availability of groundwater
• In some areas, groundwater exists in deep aquifers
• In general the mountainous and hilly regions do not
allow adequate
• In the peninsular part of India, the underlying geology
limits
 (ii) Groundwater
• Coastal regions are usually rich in groundwater

• Alluvial track of the Gangetic plain has the best

potential for groundwater extraction in the country

• Due to the highly variable nature of climate

 (iii) Lagoons and Backwater
• India has a very long coastline

• This coast is very indented in some states

• These lagoons and lakes serve as surface water resources

• Quality of water is generally brackish in nature, used for

fishing and irrigating paddy crops and coconut

 IMPORTANCE OF IRRIGATION IN INDIA
• India is essentially an agricultural country
• Country has a very long, almost spanning the entire
year growing season
• Water is the only means through which full potential
of the agricultural sector can be realized
• Water is a natural resource so efficient use of available
water resources
• Whenever water is not available through natural cause
by rainfall

“the process of supplying water to crops by artificial measures such as canals, wells,
tube wells, lakes from the existing natural sources of water like rivers, tanks, ponds or
underground water"
 Need for irrigation in India
India experiences a tropical mansoon type of climate

Following reasons justify the need for artificial application of water

(i) Uneven and uncertain distribution of rainfall

(ii) South-west monsoon responsible for 90% of rainfall

(iii) There are large variations in the spatial distribution of rainfall

(iv) The rainfall in India is restricted from June to September except in Tamil Nadu

(v) Only about 30% of the cultivated area receives sufficient annual rainfall
 Need for irrigation in India
(vi) Some crops which are grown in winter

(vii) Rainfall during the four months is torrential, giving very

little time to the soil to absorb the rainwater

(viii) Some crops need more water and hence need to be provided with irrigation

(ix) With supply of water i.e. with proper irrigation, some crops like

can have two growing seasons in a year

(x) Due to increasing population need for more and improved

irrigation facilities to achieve maximum yield

 FACTORS REQUIRED FOR DEVELOPMENT OF IRRIGATION
• Soils of Indo-Gangetic plains

• Moreover the deep clay in the subsoil acts as a reservoir for storing rainwater

• Good quantity of groundwater

• The perennial snow-fed rivers of the plains are regular sources of irrigation

• Tank irrigation is more prevalent in peninsular India due to hard rocks

 MEANS OF IRRIGATION- Canal irrigation
Different sources and methods of irrigation-

I. Canal irrigation

Canal irrigation amounts to about 40% of the total irrigated area in the country
Conditions necessary for digging canals-
The two main requirements for canal irrigation are:

(i) Low level relief with deep fertile soil

(ii) Perennial source of water i.e. snow-fed rivers which

may be used for the development of canal irrigation

 Canal irrigation
Broadly speaking, canals in India are of two types:

(a) Inundation canals

(b) Perennial canals

(a) Inundation canals

• These canals are taken out from the rivers without any regulating systems like
weirs and barrages at their head to regulate the flow of river

• The canals are taken out from the rivers when they are in

flood and there is excess of water

• Only the lower-level regions can be irrigated by such canals

Canal irrigation
Advantages:

(i) Inundation canals are easily and cheaply built

(ii) They are useful in controlling floods

Disadvantages:

(i) There is uncertainty of water supply

(ii) These canals are useful only during floods

(iii) Only low-land areas can be irrigated

 Canal irrigation
(b) Perennial canals

These canals are useful throughout the year

Advantages:

(i) As these canals serve throughout the year, the agricultural

production in the areas of less or uncertain rainfall has

increased considerably

(ii) As these canals supply water even during hot seasons,

cultivation of some crops can be carried out round the year

 Canal irrigation
Disadvantages:

(i) Problem of salt effervescence due to overflooding of the

(ii) Problem of water-logging in case of unlined canals

(iii) To save the over-flooding it is necessary to line the canals

with bricks and mortar along the embankments

 Canal irrigation
Irrigation by canals is more suitable in northern India as compared to the south due to
the following reasons:

• The rivers of northern plains are perennial as they are

snow-fed whereas in southern India rivers are seasonal

• The surface of the northern plains is flat and soft and hence

easy to dig whilst in the south, the region being rocky is difficult to dig

• Demand for irrigation is greater in the northern part

 Tank Irrigation

• Tank irrigation is useful in the areas which are dependent on rainfall

• In India, about 12% of the total irrigated area is done by the tanks

• Tanks are used mostly in peninsular India

Tank Irrigation
Conditions necessary for building tanks in Peninsular India

The favourable conditions:

The main reasons for the popularity of tanks in peninsular India are:

(i) Most of the area of peninsular India is uneven with many

natural depressions where the tanks are/can be built

(ii) The Deccan plateau consists of underlying hard rocks

which are impervious or non-porous

(iii) Peninsular India receives monsoon type of climate

 Tank Irrigation
Advantages of Tank Irrigation:
• Tank irrigation is prevalent in Deccan plateau region where
water is collected and used later for irrigation
• Tank irrigation is cheaper than other type of irrigation as
the rainwater is collected in natural pits and depressions
• As the water is collected and used in dry season
• It is difficult to build canals in the Deccan plateau regions,
whereas tanks can easily be built in the region
• The tank water is used for domestic purposes in villages.
• In the absence of perennial rivers and canals, tanks provide a source of water
 Tank Irrigation
Disadvantages of tank irrigation:
Large amount of water is wasted through evaporation
Tanks are non-perennial and dry up in summer
Tanks use up large areas of land which could be used for agriculture
Areas:
Most important states for tank irrigation are Andhra
Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu
Other notable states- Odisha, Karnataka and Maharashtra
In northern India, the tank irrigation is prevalent in the states
of West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan
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Last slide
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