Watershed Development Programme in Bihar

Effective use of land and water is fundamental to growth and sustainable development. The concept of watershed management has evolved to ensure effective use of both natural and social capitals. Thus, the watershed development programmes include land, water, and human resources as essential components. The watershed programme is primarily a land-based programme, which is increasingly being focused on water, with its main objective being to enhance agricultural productivity through increased in situ moisture conservation and protective irrigation for socio-economic development of rural people. It has been essential in a country like India where the majority of the population depends on agriculture and about 60 per cent of the total arable land (142 million ha) in the country is rain-fed. A large portion of the rain-fed areas (65% of arable land) in India is characterized by low productivity, high risk, and uncertainty, low level of technological change and vulnerability to degradation of natural resources. Over the years, the sustainable use of land and water has received wider attention among policy makers, administrators, scientists, and researchers.