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Due to increasing population and limited resources, there is constant pressure on the Indian economy to increase the agricultural productivity by introducing better farming techniques that not only increase the productivity but also reduce the excess consumption of natural resources like water. Drip irrigation, sprinklers, pivots and rain guns have recently been introduced in the irrigation infrastructure that has numerous benefits. A national level policy was introduced in 2014 with the aim to expand area under irrigation, increase agricultural productivity and minimize water wastage called ―Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojna (PMKSY)‖. Under this scheme, subsidy is provided to install drip and sprinkler systems to the marginal and general farmers having landholding size up to 5 acres.
This paper analyzes the impact of PMKSY on the on-farm profit and cropping intensity of the horticulture crops growing farmers in Haryana. Primary survey was conducted for the data collection from the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of this policy for the year 2017-2018 and Heckman Sample Selection Model has been used to estimate the results of the intervention. The results show that drip irrigation has significant positive impacts on the on-farm profit and the cropping intensity of horticulture crops. Beneficiaries of drip irrigation systems had higher on-farm profit and higher cropping intensities as compared to non-beneficiaries. Hence, there is need to promote these scientific techniques of irrigation in order to achieve environmental sustainability and higher agriculture output.
KEYWORDS: Drip irrigation, Micro-irrigation
