Challenges of Water for Food, People and Environment–ICID’s1 Initiative on ‘Country Policy Support Programme’ (CPSP) - Water and Agriculture: Sustainability, Markets and Policies - page 150

The total water input (rainfall and imports) to the basin is 51,586 million m 3 . The
major water outflow from the basin comprises consumptive use (69%) and river flows
(31%). The total consumptive use (in terms of evapo-transpiration — ET) at present
(2000) is 34,138 million m 3 comprising about 64% by the nature sector (forests, pastures
and barren lands), 35% by the agriculture sector (rainfed and irrigated agriculture) and
1% by the people sector (domestic and industrial). The non-beneficial ET is about 28% of
the total consumptive use.
Major findings
The major findings of the assessment are:
The nature sector is by far the largest consumer of water.
The contribution of groundwater to base flow is increasing, indicating risk of
waterlogging.
Future withdrawal requirements would need full use of Rengali Dam storage, as well as
creation of additional storage in the basin.
Considerable land would remain rain-fed, and productivity increases may require
watershed management of upper regions.
The basin would not have overall water shortages, even in the projected scenario of
increased agricultural and industrial water use.
Policy-related issues emerging out of Brahmani Basin studies
Some important policy-related choices emerging from the Brahmani river basin
assessments are:
A shift in the concept of “water resources”: in order to consider the impacts of nature
sector use, both terrestrial as well as the needs of aquatic eco-systems, impacts of
rainfall harvesting, artificial recharge and, above all, for integration across the three
sectors, precipitation is to be considered as the primary renewable water resource.
The need to account for return flows as additional water available for use.
The need to account for water use by sectors, and their integration.
The need for recognising EFR and mainstreaming such requirements into basin water
management;.
The need for a more balanced use of surface and ground water and provision of
adequate drainage and relief from floods.