Participatory GIS For Irrigation Management in Periyar Main Canal Command Area - A Case Study of Kumaram Village, Madurai District

Authors(2) :-R. Manonmani, Dr. R. S. Suja Rose

Geographical Information System (GIS) has been established as a powerful tool for planning and decision making process. The participation of local farmers at different stages of data input in GIS enables the researcher or a planner to produce a holistic and efficient output in the process of participatory planning. Participatory GIS (PGIS) aims to use the spatial knowledge of people at local level. The spatial representation of local knowledge facilitates participatory decision-making processes. The use of local knowledge and perception of farmers can help in creating an outline for developmental plans. It can contribute to the empowerment of farmers in solving developmental problems. The Periyar main canal command area (PMCC), under the administration of Dindigul, Madurai and Sivaganga districts, is selected for the present study to understand and the problem of the farmers. The aim of the study is to understand the irrigation facilities and to analyse the problems in irrigation management using PGIS in Kumaram village. Participatory maps are prepared by the farmers and are used as input in GIS. Further various methods of participatory rural appraisal (PRA) like transect walk, focus group discussion, participatory mapping and ranking methods are adopted in the study. The problem faced in the study area includes shortage of water for irrigation, inadequate price for agricultural produce, inadequate labour and ineffective water user association. Finally, the study concludes with suggestive measures that can be taken for the improvement of irrigation facilities for better cultivation in the study area.

Authors and Affiliations

R. Manonmani
Department of Environmental Remote Sensing and Cartography Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. India
Dr. R. S. Suja Rose
Department of Environmental Remote Sensing and Cartography Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. India

Irrigation Management, Participatory Mapping and PGIS

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Publication Details

Published in : Volume 3 | Issue 8 | November-December 2017
Date of Publication : 2017-12-31
License:  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Page(s) : 862-874
Manuscript Number : IJSRST1738187
Publisher : Technoscience Academy

Print ISSN : 2395-6011, Online ISSN : 2395-602X

Cite This Article :

R. Manonmani, Dr. R. S. Suja Rose, " Participatory GIS For Irrigation Management in Periyar Main Canal Command Area - A Case Study of Kumaram Village, Madurai District", International Journal of Scientific Research in Science and Technology(IJSRST), Print ISSN : 2395-6011, Online ISSN : 2395-602X, Volume 3, Issue 8, pp.862-874, November-December-2017.
Journal URL : https://ijsrst.com/IJSRST1738187
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