Status of irrigation development in Nepal

Nepal has about 2.64 million ha of cultivable land, of which roughly 1.76 million ha (mostly in the Terai) is considered irrigable by surface and ground water. These figures are approximate and are updated in national plans.

Present status

• About 1.3-1.4 million ha (roughly half of the cultivated area) has some irrigation facility; however, only about 0.5-0.7 million ha gets year-round irrigation.
• Surface irrigation (canals from rivers) dominates; groundwater (shallow tube wells (STW) and deep tube wells (DTW)) irrigates a large area in the Terai.
• Farmer-managed irrigation systems (FMIS), such as kulos in the hills, cover a large share of the area; agency-managed irrigation systems (AMIS) cover the large Terai schemes.
• Main schemes: Sunsari-Morang, Kankai, Narayani (Gandak), Chandra Canal, Rani-Jamara-Kulariya, Mahakali, Banganga, Babai, Bheri-Babai diversion (inter-basin) and Sikta.
• The hills have small systems and are developing lift and micro-irrigation (drip, sprinkler).

Institutions and policy

• Department of Water Resources and Irrigation (DWRI) under the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation.
• Irrigation Policy 2060 BS, Water Resources Strategy 2002, National Water Plan 2005 and Irrigation Master Plan 2019 (which targets year-round irrigation for all irrigable land).
• Management transfer to WUAs and joint management are being promoted.

Problems

Low reliability, silt, flood damage, poor O&M, low cropping intensity (about 150-180%) and limited year-round irrigation. The targets are to extend year-round irrigation, use surface and ground water conjunctively, and upgrade old systems.