Reuse of wastewater as a climate mitigation strategy - Bengaluru and its hinterland.pdf

Reuse of wastewater as a climate
mitigation strategy - Bengaluru and its
hinterland
Submitted by Biome Environmental Trust
June 2021

Resuse of wastewater as a climate mitigation strategy - Bengaluru and its hinterland: Final Report June 2021 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Content Page no.
List of Abbreviations
List of Figures
List of Tables
Abstract 1
Executive Summary 2
Chapter 1 - Introduction 5
1.1 Establishing drought and climate vulnerability in Kolar 7
1.2 Bengaluru - it’s wastewater story 10
1.3 KC Valley treated wastewater transfer project 14
Chapter 2 - Research questions and methodology 17
2.1 Research objective 17
2.2 Research questions 17
2.3 Research methodology 18
Part A
Chapter 3 - Documentation of KC valley treated wastewater transfer
project
23
3.1 Lakes that are yet to receive treated wastewater 23
3.1.1 Primary details of the lakes 23
3.1.2 Groundwater situation 25
3.1.3 Livelihoods 26
3.1.4 Impact of drought and mitigation 27
3.2 Lakes that have received treated wastewater 28
3.3 Observations on the KC valley treated wastewater transfer project 32

3.3.1 Legal, Institutional and Financial framework 32
3.3.2 Engineering Design 35
3.3.4 Social inclusion 37
3.3.5 Water quality 37
3.3.6 Design for environment 37
Chapter 4 - Study of impact in JSYS rejuvenated lakes 38
4.1 Lakes that have been rejuvenated under JSYS project 40
4.1.4 Impact of drought and mitigation 46
4.2 Observations on the JSYS project 47
4.2.1 Legal, Institutional and Financial framework 48
4.2.2 Project design and processes 49
4.2.4 Social inclusion 50
4.2.5 Design for environment 51
Chapter 5 - Informal use of wastewater down Dakshina Pinakini 51
5.1 informal use of wastewater 52
5.1.1 Methods for wastewater reuse 54
5.1.2 Investments for pumping 56
5.1.3 Agriculture and cropping patterns 59
5.1.4 Water quality 60
5.2 Perception on the usage of wastewater and the impact of KC valley
project on Dakshina Pinakini
61
Chapter 6 - Key takeaways from drought mitigation strategy projects
and learnings for KC valley project
63

6.1 Evaluation of wastewater reuse in KC valley project and informal
use down Dakshina Pinakini river
63
6.2 Evaluation of the tanks under KC valley project, JSYS rejuvenated
lakes and other lakes
66
Part B
Chapter 7 - Environmental Impact study of lakes with treated
wastewater
69
7.1 Overall observations for each lake 70
7.1.1 Lakshmisagara lake 72
7.1.2 Perjenahalli lake 74
7.1.3 Holali lake 75
7.1.4 Chikka Hosakere lake 77
7.2 Design recommendations for lakes receiving treated wastewater 79
7.1.1 Seasonal filling of lakes 79
7.1.2 Design of lake profile 79
7.1.3 Wetlands 70
7.1.4 Islands 80
7.1.1 Foreshore and bund plantation 81
7.1.2 Community participation 82
7.3 Conclusion and next steps 82
Part C
Chapter 8 - Discussion 83
Appendix 86
References 103

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
BDA - Bengaluru Development Authority
BWSSB - Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board
CFT - Cluster facilitation team
CPHEEO - Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation
DPU - District Project Units
EIA - Environmental Impact Assessment
GoK - Government of Karnataka
HN valley - Hebbal Nagawara Valley
IMD - India Meteorological Department
IGA - Income generation activities
IISc - Indian Institute of Science
IIMS - Integrated Information Management System
ITDP - Integrated Tank Development Plans
JSYS - Jala Samvardhane Yojana Sangha
KCBTMP - Karnataka Community based tank management project
KSNDMC - Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Center
KC Valley - Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley
MID - Minor Irrigation Department
MLD - Million litres per day
NGOs - non-governmental Organization
O&M - Operations and Management
PRI - Panchayath Raj Institutions
PDS - Public Distribution System
PRA - Public Rural Appraisal
SSP - Sanitation Safety Plan
STP - Sewage treatment plants
STIFLE - Social, Technical, Institutional, Financial, Legal and Environmental framework
SPU - State Project Unit
TMI - Tank Management Institutions
TUC - Tank User Committees,
TUG - Tank User Group
V-Valley - Vrishabhavathi Valley
WIG - Women Interest Groups
WHO - World Health Organisations
WRDO - Water Resources Development Organisation

LIST OF FIGURES
Sl No. Details Page no.
Figure 1 Karnataka map of Kharif season drought, 2018 6
Figure 2 Location of Kolar District, Karnataka 7
Figure 3 Average annual rainfall in Kolar District, 2006-2014 (source: Singh
et al, 2021)
8
Figure 4 Map showing the water management (inflow and outflow) of
Bengaluru
10
Figure 5 A list and location of STPs in Bengaluru 12
Figure 6 Water balance chart for Bengaluru 13
Figure 7 KC Valley - Bellandur and Varthur lakes and STP 14
Figure 8 Koramangala - Challaghatta Valley Treated Wastewater transfer
Project map
15
Figure 9 BWSSB Sewage Treatment Plant in Bellandur (Source: MID) 16
Figure 10 Uddapanahalli, Jodikrishnapura and Narsapura lakes filled with
treated wastewater from KC valley project (Source: MID)
16
Figure 11 Key map indicating the study area and documented lakes/villages 20
Figure 12 Interviews being conducted with farmers/labourers in
Marakalagatta village
23
Figure 13 Doddakere during the beginning of Oct 2020, only partially filled
with water
24
Figure 14 Holali lake, Sept 2020; The overflow channel/Palar river from
Holali lake
25
Figure 15 Openwells in the upstream of Doddakere with monsoon water 26
Figure 16 (left) Tomato being grown using borewell water (right) Ragi
plantation and Tomato plantation using borewell water in the
command area of Doddakere, Marakalghatta
26
Figure 17 (left) Mulberry grown using borewell water (right) Ragi plantation
using borewell water in the command area of Holali lake
27
Figure 18 Left: Aerial view of Lakshmisagara lake; Right: Outlet from lake 29
Figure 19 Map showing Lakshmisagara lake and surrounding agricultural
lands
29

Figure 20 Openwells in the vicinity of Lakshmisagara with full water
throughout the year
30
Figure 21 Agricultural lands nearby Lakshmisagara lake uses water from
wells, with drip irrigation
32
Figure 22 Fisheries in Lakshmisagara, contracted to a local farmer by gram
panchayat
32
Figure 23 Asha conducting an interview with one of the farmers
downstream of Hosakere lake, Pichaguntlahalli
40
Figure 24 Pichguntlahalli lake full from monsoon 2020; Pichguntlahalli lake
showing lake bed, bund and command area with paddy plantation
41
Figure 25 Map of Hosakere, Pichguntlahalli village 41
Figure 26 Chikka Hosakere lake, Honashettihalli village 42
Figure 27 Map of Chikka Hosakere, Honashettihalli village 43
Figure 28 A full open well in the command area of Chikka Hosakere,
Honashettihalli
44
Figure 29 Agricultural fields with paddy translation in Chikka Hosakere,
Honsahettihalli village, Sept 2020
45
Figure 30 Chikka Hosakere with full water (2006); Chika Hosakere
completely dry (2015-2019)
46
Figure 31 Paddy plantation in the command area of Hosakere,
Pichguntlahalli; monsoon 2020
47
Figure 32 Shruni Teertha step well, Bhoganandeeshwara Temple 51
Figure 33 Dakshina Pinakini river 52
Figure 34 Dry well around the Dakshina Pinakini river 53
Figure 35 Map showing extent of area under irrigation from use of Dakshina
Pinakini water
54
Figure 36 Processes of wastewater use from Dakshina Pinakini 55
Figure 37 Method and processes of wastewater reuse in irrigation of
agricultural lands
56
Figure 38 Paddy fields irrigated with wastewater, Mugalur village. Advantage
to the farmer is that it requires no fertilizers.
59

Figure 39 Using the same wastewater, diluted with borewell water, they
grow all varieties of vegetables and some flowers
60
Figure 40 Investment for a new borewell in 2020, due to water quality issues
in river
62
Figure 41 Diversion channel to facilitate lake desilting work which carries
raw sewage into Dakshina Pinakini stream
62
Figure 42 Total number of bird species seen overall for all lakes during the
three visits
71
Figure 43 Total number of migratory and residents water/land birds seen at
each lake over three visits
71
Figure 44 Number of bird species observed during 3 visits for each lake 72
Figure 45 Left: Lakshmisagara lake full with treated wastewater; Right:
Surrounding agricultural lands at Lakshmisagara
73
Figure 46 Some common resident bird species seen at Lakshmisagara 73
Figure 47 Migrant land birds seen at Lakshmisagara (between Dec-Mar) 73
Figure 48 Divers and fish feeders seen at Lakshmisagara 74
Figure 49 Dumping yard adjacent to Lakshmisagara lake 74
Figure 50 Perjanahalli lake bed, with many reed islands and dry trees seen in
the lake bed
75
Figure 51 Water birds seen in Perjanahalli lake 75
Figure 52 Left: Dry lake bed in Aug;Right: Lake filled up with rainwater
post-monsoon (December)
76
Figure 53 Bund at Holali lake 76
Figure 54 Land birds seen perching on the reeds around the lake bed 76
Figure 55 52+ coots seen in Holali during December 77
Figure 56 Resident water birds seen at Holali 77
Figure 57 Migrant water birds seen at Holali 78
Figure 58 Left: Chikka Hosakere lake full with rainwater; Right: Command
area of Chikka Hosakere
78

LIST OF TABLES
No. Details Page no.
Table 1 Drought affected years in Kolar District (2001-2015) 9
Table 2 Details of STPs under the three valleys - viz.
Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley (KC Valley), Hebbal Nagawara
Valley (HN Valley) and Vrishabhavathi Valley (V-Valley)
11
Table 3 Details of proposed secondary treated wastewater transfer
projects under MID
13
Table 4 Evaluation of informal reuse of wastewater and KC valley project 64
Table 5 Evaluation of informal JSYS project, non-JSYS project and KC valley
project
66

1
ABSTRACT
The ~1640 MLD of wastewater generated in Bengaluru city follows the regional topography and
flows down along the three principal valleys viz. Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley (KC Valley),
Hebbal Nagawara Valley (HN Valley) and Vrishabhavathi Valley (V-Valley). From this, 440 MLD of
secondary treated wastewater from the STPs located in the K & C Valley from Bengaluru is utilized
by the Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley (KC Valley wastewater transfer project) and pumped in
stages, transferred to fill 134 existing tanks in the districts of Kolar and Chikkaballapur - many of
which have been dry since the past successive droughts. The study conducted has observed that the
benefits of lakes being filled up can be seen by full open wells and increased yields of the borewells
in the lake influence zone. The impact can be observed with change in landuse from eucalyptus
plantations to farmers growing 3-4 crops in a year which include commercially viable crops such as
tomatoes, beans, cauliflower, chillies, flowers like marigold and jasmine and mulberry plants for
silkworm rearing. The benefits can also be seen by increased employment and livelihood
opportunities with income sources for both men and women and landless due to increased
agricultural cultivation duration. Fisheries has been contracted to a local farmer, from the Gram
Panchayat, which serves as economic revenue. It has also been observed that the presence of the
water in the lake also contributes to the local biodiversity. Thus, with the formalized transfer of
treated wastewater as a source for irrigation, the project ensures perennial water availability in the
drought affected districts of Kolar and Chikkaballapur, representing resilience for farmers against
climate variability. In the situation when Bengaluru’s hinterland is vulnerable to climate change
impacting the livelihood security of the region, wastewater can become a perennial resource for
Agriculture. The city can provide wastewater to the hinterland which safeguards livelihood security
of the farmers as well as the food security of the city.
However, unlike earlier executed projects under the World Bank (Karnataka Community Based Tank
Management Project), the KC valley project design is not in a manner that it benefits all people in
the village but only landowners who can afford to access groundwater via openwells or borewells.
The project design will have more impact and will be beneficial if consideration towards equal
distribution of water and social equity is made. A detailed hydrogeology study and aquifer mapping
would help better understand the impact on groundwater recharge, influence zones as well as
provide inputs for overflow design for each of the lakes. Additionally, interventions in terms of
educating farmers on the World Health Organisations (WHOs) Sanitation Safety Plan (SSP),
facilitation for crop choices, introduction of water efficient devices and optimization of irrigation
would help mitigate both health and environmental risks and further enhance the area of land
under cultivation. Furthermore, the impact on secondary treated wastewater on the groundwater
sources in the village used for drinking purposes needs to be closely monitored.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The following research involved studying formal wastewater transfer and reuse project and the
informal reuse of wastewater in and around Dakshina Pinakini, as a climate mitigation strategy. The
research studied the impact on aquifers and the availability of groundwater for farmers, crop
cultivation pattern of farmers to understand the farmers response to use of wastewater as a climate
change mitigation measure as well as to understand the KC valley project’s impact on agriculture.

The state of Karnataka is one of the 16 states in India which is frequently affected by drought which
affects not only the rain fed production system but also the livelihood of people. A study by
Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Center (KSNDMC) indicates that Kolar is a chronically
drought-prone district, having a vulnerability index of 0.68. Since there are no perennial rivers in
the Kolar district, the lakes or tanks1
are very integral to Kolar district to provide food and
livelihood security. However, due to an uncertain rainfall pattern and increased droughts, the tanks
no longer hold water. The groundwater thus, became a primary source of water for domestic and
irrigation requirements. The groundwater table has been plummeting over the past decade and it
has impacted the agricultural production in the district.
There are examples from the other cities in India like Hyderabad, Delhi, Hubli-Dharwad, Tumkur,
Chikballapur and Bengaluru where farmers desperate for irrigation due to depleting groundwater
tables turn to both treated and untreated wastewater for irrigation purposes. In India, one estimate
suggests that treated wastewater can annually irrigate about 1 to 1.5 Million Hectares of land area
(Sengupta, 2008). It also has a potential to contribute about one million tonnes of nutrients and 130
million man-days of employment (Minhas and Samra, 2004).
The Government of Karnataka in 2018 launched an ambitious and one of the worlds largest
programme to transfer 770 million litres per day of treated wastewater to the neighbouring drought
prone districts of Kolar, Chikballapur and Bengaluru Rural districts recognising the water distress in
the drought prone districts in the hinterland. The Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley project (KC
valley project which will be detailed in this report) aims at pumping 440 MLD of secondary treated
wastewater to 134 tanks in the Kolar and parts of Chikkaballapur districts. This has been done with
a thought that farmers will be benefited through indirect recharge from the tanks.
The research has studied 3 lakes which are part of KC valley project viz. Holali lake in Holali village
and Doddakere in Markalgatta village which are yet to receive treated wastewater and
Lakshmisagara lake in Lakshmisagara village which is the first lake of the total 134 lakes of the KC
valley project and has been receiving treated wastewater for the two years (2019-2021). The data
was collected through field interviews of the farmers to understand the groundwater situation,
impact on the livelihoods of the farmers and fishermen, and drought mitigation measures.
It was observed that lakes which have not undergone any rejuvenation in the past, tend to
underperform and do not fill up fully even during years of good rainfall, as they have not been
maintained well. The open wells and borewell yields are also low and farmers are able to grow only
1-2 crops during years of good rainfall. However, it has been observed that the aquifer is directly
impacted by a full lake and the groundwater situation is expected to become better and most
farmers believe that their borewells (even the failed ones) might yield again.
As observed, Lakshmisagara has become a thriving economy post rejuvenation and entry of treated
wastewater into the lake. Many of the farmers who had left the farms due to drought to look for
1
Lakes and tanks are interchangeably used in the document

employment in the city, have now readopted their lands. Farmers have shifted from eucalyptus
plantations and are now able to grow 3-4 crops in a year. Farmers prefer to grow commercially
viable crops now, such as tomatoes, beans, cauliflower, chillies, flowers like Marigold and Jasmine
and mulberry plants for silkworm rearing. The open wells are brimming with water and the
borewells yields have also increased. Due to increased agricultural cultivation duration, the
employment opportunities for wage labourers - men and women, landless - has increased too.
However, the project design is not in a manner that it benefits all people but only landowners who
can afford to access groundwater via openwells or borewells.
In this research, the KC valley project has also been compared and contrasted with an earlier tank
based drought mitigation project in Karnataka. The project was called the ‘Karnataka Community
based tank management’ project supported by the World Bank (referred to as JSYS as the project
established a JSYS institution). With an objective to improve rural livelihood and reduce poverty, the
project adopted a community-based approach for tank ownership and management. The
institutional organization and the rejuvenation activities focused not only within the lake boundary
but also focussed on bringing equity and distribution of benefits to the landless and marginalized
with a focus on inclusion of women in the project. It ensured local NGOs and communities
participated from all the processes of design to implementation and maintenance. Two lakes -
Hosakere, Pichguntlahalli village and Chikka Hosakere, Honashettihalli village which were revived
as part of this program were studied in the research, which showed great potential in improving
livelihood and food security of the village. However, as observed on ground, these outcomes have
been only partially successful and a long-term O&M of the tank has failed and the tank sees a
productive use of rainfall only during years of average and above average rainfall but not during
drought. The JSYS project had also outlined a comprehensive set of indicators to evaluate success of
the project and to ensure more equity among the beneficiaries. These objectives could be overlaid
with the KC valley project, to understand what interventions and learnings from the JSYS can be
taken to have a far better social impact and for strengthening the organizational and operational
management of the KC valley project design.
In the KC valley project, due to the pumping of the treated wastewater throughout the year in the
tanks, the hydrology of the region would change. The KC valley project is intended to benefit the
farmers through indirect groundwater recharge wherein the role played by hydrogeology will be
important in the water management and wastewater reuse. A detailed aquifer mapping as well as
studies on soil aquifer treatment would be useful to understand the groundwater recharge. A focus
on water quality and monitoring of the water quality frequently would also help in understanding
the surface water and the groundwater connection. With open wells benefitting immediately, and
being shared by farmers, plays an important role to transfer benefits to those who don’t own open
wells or borewells. There should also be a push to move towards using the shallow aquifer via open
wells and incentive to use drip irrigation.
As the source of water is wastewater, the farmers will have to be facilitated for crop choices and a
shift to non-edibles like mulberry, horticultural crops and the markets for those crops need to be
explored. There is a need to continuously keep a check on water quality in both open wells and

borewells being recharged by the filling up of these tanks. Further interventions in terms of
educating farmers on the World Health Organisations (WHOs) Sanitation Safety Plan (SSP) for the
safe reuse of treated wastewater in agriculture would help mitigate both health and environmental
risks while handling the wastewater. Further, introduction of water efficient devices and
optimization of irrigation can enhance the area of land under cultivation. The tanks also should be
looked at from the benefits that they bring in from the ecosystem services perspective. The
inclusion of elements of ecology in the design of the lake like plantation, creation of wetlands, and
islands will attract more biodiversity to the lake. These elements will not only contribute to
improving water quality but also provide livelihood opportunities like fishing.
Bengaluru, which generates ~1640 MLD of wastewater, discharges it out of the city into the drought
prone hinterland. Every drop of treated and untreated wastewater flowing from the city through the
Vrishabhavathi valley and the Dakshina Pinakini stream is used for irrigation by farmers, sometimes
formally as in Samethanahalli and Bairamanagala wherein Minor Irrigation Department (MID)
regulates the pumping and mostly informally, through short and long distance pumping privately by
the farmers. Farmers have made large sums of investments to pump this water into their farm lands
wherein a simple pre-treatment (in a shallow pond, or open well) precedes the usage of wastewater.
This wastewater is rich in nutrients and hence is a good source of water for the crops. It was noted
that farmers grow at least 3 crops and sometimes multiple crops in a year. Farmers are able to grow
all kinds of crops like various vegetables and greens such as beans, tomatoes, chillies, radish,
gourds, cauliflower, spinach, coriander, fodder maize, ragi, paddy and flowers except few root
vegetables. Therefore, farmers along the wastewater streams of the city of Bengaluru refer to it as
perennial climate proof waters. However, these farmers are concerned now about water quality and
quantity as the wastewater is being diverted to drought prone areas of Kolar, Chikkaballapur and
other Bengaluru Rural districts.
In the situation when Bengaluru’s hinterland is vulnerable to climate change impacting the
livelihood security of the region, wastewater can become a perennial resource of water for
Agriculture. The city can provide wastewater to the hinterland which safeguards livelihood security
of the farmers as well as the food security of the city. The KC valley project is implementing this in a
‘formal’ approach but it is also depriving farmers informally tapping into the wastewater streams
for many decades, downstream of Dakshina Pinakini river. Thus, the wastewater reuse policy of the
state and the city should take into consideration both the informal and formal reuse and integrate it
while making investments and planning.
Bengaluru city then becomes a diffused dam, receiving and leaving out large volumes of water every
day safely to benefit the hinterland. The wastewater becomes a lifeline for the hinterland and a
drought proofing measure!

1.0 Introduction
Bengaluru city, with a population of 13 million people (as of 2018), meets its daily water demand of
2100 MLD through river cauvery and groundwater. The wastewater of ~1640 MLD generated, is
discharged and flows out from the city through the Cauvery river and the Dakshina Pinakini river,
via three principal valleys. This water has been used informally by farmers for many decades in the
past, for meeting agricultural water requirements.
There are examples of many cities in India like Hyderabad, Delhi, Hubli-Dharwad, Tumkur,
Chikballapur and Bengaluru where farmers are distressed for lack of irrigation water due to
depleting groundwater tables and have turned to both treated and untreated wastewater for
irrigation purposes. In India, one estimate suggests that treated wastewater can annually irrigate
about 1 to 1.5 Million Hectares of land area (Sengupta, 2008). It also has a potential to contribute
about one million tonnes of nutrients and 130 million man-days of employment (Minhas and Samra,
2004).
While the city has a perennial supply of water, the agricultural hinterlands of Kolar, Chikkaballapur,
Anekal districts are dependent on monsoon for meeting their irrigation and domestic water needs.
These districts are chronically affected by drought and climate variabilities. In 2018, the kharif
season drought saw all parts of SIK affected by drought except Bengaluru (Figure 1.0). In the
situation when Bengaluru’s hinterland is vulnerable to climate change impacting the food and
livelihood security of the region, wastewater can become a perennial resource for agriculture. The
city can provide wastewater to the hinterland which safeguards livelihood security of the farmers as
well as the food security of the city.
In tandem with this, the KC valley project of Government of Karnataka intends to lift 440 million
litres per day of secondary treated waste-water from the K & C treatment plants of the BWSSB and
pump it in stages to 134 lakes in the drought prone districts of Kolar and Chikkaballapur.

Figure 1: Kharif season drought, 2018 (Source 2018)
The Government of Karnataka with support from the World Bank had also implemented a
participatory tank rejuvenation program between 2001-2011 to mitigate the drought in the drought
prone areas of the State. It is titled the, ‘Karnataka Community based Tank management project’
(KCBTMP) project which set up a semi-autonomous institution called Jala Samvardhane Yojana
Sangha (JSYS).
In this research, the impact of wastewater as a drought proof measure will be studied in detail with
reference to the informal use in the Dakshina Pinakini and KC valley Project. Since tanks were the
focus of intervention in the JSYS project, the KC valley project was compared and contrasted with
the JSYS project to learn from it. The documentation was analysed using the Social, Technical,
Institutional, Financial, Legal and Environmental (STIFLE) framework.
The report is divided into three sections - Part A, Part B and Part C. Part A and Part B which together
provide recommendations for the KC valley project. The Part A focuses documentation of lakes
rejuvenated under JSYS project, Informal wastewater reuse around Dakshina Pinakini and lakes

which are yet to receive treated wastewater and the lakes which have been receiving treated
wastewater from the KC valley project. The focus of the documentation in this section has been to
understand the current situation with respect to the groundwater, livelihoods and the drought
mitigation and observations with reference to institutional and legal framework, financial
management and investments, lake design, food and water security and social inclusion.
Part B focuses on the Environmental Impact Study that has been conducted for four lakes in Kolar
district to determine the baseline biodiversity in the study area. The purpose of the study is to
compare and contrast the biodiversity (flora and fauna) in and around rainfed and seasonal lakes
with the lakes filling up with treated wastewater. The expected outcome of the study is to provide
recommendations for enhancing lake design and ecosystem of the lakes.
Part C focuses on the challenges and opportunities of the project and outlines the various ways the
reuse of treated wastewater can form a circular economy between the city and its hinterland.
1.1 Establishing drought and climate variability in Kolar
Figure 2: Location of Kolar District, Karnataka
Karnataka has 16 of the 24 most drought-prone districts in India, of which Kolar is one among six
permanently drought-prone ones (National Rainfed Area Authority [NRAA], 2019). On an average,

there has been an increase in the number of drought affected taluks within a short period of 5 years
in the state indicating vulnerability (KSNDMC, 2020). During Rabi 2018-2019, 156 taluks in 30
districts including Kolar, were declared drought-hit (Revenue Department, GoK).
Kolar is located on the southern plains of Karnataka in the eastern semi-arid zone. The district is
located on three basins - Palar, Ponnaiar and Pennar - the tributaries (Palar, Papagani and
Markandeya) of which are small and seasonal (CGWB, 2012).
The annual precipitation of Kolar district ranges from 799-857mm, 55% of which is received during
the kharif season/ south-west monsoon (CGWB, 2012). The block wise rainfall analysis shows an
overall decrease over the years between 2006-2014 (Singh, 2021). The district was declared
drought hit for the years 2007, 2009 and between 20011-2016, and none of the seasonal rivers or
tanks have filled up indicating a hydrological drought (KSNDMC, 2017; Singh, 2021).
Figure 3: Average annual rainfall in Kolar District, 2006-2014 (source: Singh et al, 2021)
“KSNDMC is the nodal agency for Monitoring Activities pertaining to Natural Disasters in
Karnataka. Since the weather stations of IMD or WRDO are unevenly distributed geographically,
either at Tehsil or few at Hobli level, there is a lack of uniformity of data across the State. KSNDMC
has installed weather stations which are recording weather and rainfall parameters across the state,
covering all the Hoblis in the last decade. The numbers have increased and in the last five years,
KSNDMC has rain gauges at every gram panchayat, through which fine scale data has been
obtained. KSNDMC has analysed various parameters to understand the variation in the distribution
of rainfall with respect to time and space. From our analysis it shows that Kolar is vulnerable to
drought and shows erratic rainfall patterns. ” - Dr. Prabhu, KSNDMC

Studies have indicated that climate variability is increasing, showing more erratic rainfall patterns,
increase in temperature, increasing variance in humidity, and dry spells becoming more frequent
(Kolar District Office, 2018; KSNDMC, 2018, DST, 2018). These inconsistencies are more
pronounced on a monthly basis, indicated by high coefficients of variability; Projections indicate an
increase in drought occurrence during rabi seasons in Kolar District (CGWB, 2012; KSNDMC, 2018).
As per DST (2020) study, Kolar is the second most vulnerable district of the state, with a
vulnerability index of 0.68.
With the decline of traditional tanks and climate variability, the district has been dependent solely
on groundwater for all its irrigation and domestic water demands. As a result of which the
groundwater extraction has surpassed natural recharge by 180% (CGWB, 2012) and by 211% in
2017 (CGWB, 2017) and there has been a steep decline in net annual groundwater availability. All
the 5 taluks are classified as ‘OverExploited’ (OE) (CGWB, 2012).
As per (Singh, 2021) research study, 42% of the population in Kolar falls within the BPL line,
consisting of small and marginal farmers and landless labourers. Of the total district area of Kolar,
60% comes under cultivation, out of which 50% is agriculture, 44% is horticulture and 6% is
sericulture. There has been a shift from multi-cropping of millets, vegetables and cereals to
mono-cropping of climate-sensitive, water intensive crops such as flowers,tomatoes, mulberry and
sugarcane. Further, the introduction and plantation of nilgiri (eucalyptus) has had negative impacts
and resulted in loss of soil fertility and increased pressure on groundwater.
There has been a drastic shift in water management from traditional tank systems to individual
private borewells. Integral to Kolar district, tank ecosystems were the primary source of water for
domestic as well as irrigation and provided people with food security and livelihood security, while
also recharging the groundwater. Hence the only source of water for the people could be sustained
due to the tanks. However, due to drought, many of the lakes in Kolar district have been bone-dry
and drought affected for at least 9 out of 11 years in the past (KSNDMC, 2017).
Sl
no.
Taluks 2
0
0
1
2
0
0
2
2
0
0
3
2
0
0
4
2
0
0
5
2
0
0
6
2
0
0
7
2
0
0
8
2
0
0
9
2
0
1
0
2
0
1
1
2
0
1
2
2
0
1
3
2
0
1
4
2
0
1
5
1 Bangarpet
2 Kolar
3 Malur
4 Mulbagal
5 Srinivasapura
Table 1: Drought affected years in Kolar District (2001-2015)

1.2 Bengaluru - its wastewater story
“Cities are not only dense human habitations engaged in non-agricultural activity but also can be
seen as being part of a vast water flow arrangement.”
Figure 4: Map showing the water management (inflow and outflow) of Bengaluru
Bengaluru has a population of approximately 13 million as of 2018. The draft revised master plan
for the year 2031 prepared by the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) estimates that the
population of Bengaluru could be as high as 20 million and above by the year 2031. This would
mean that the water demand for the city would be 3000 million litres per day (BWSSB). The city
then becomes like a diffused dam, receiving and discharging large volumes of water on a daily basis.
The water supply and wastewater in the city is managed by the Bengaluru Water Supply and
Sewerage Board (BWSSB), an autonomous institution set up in 1964. BWSSB sources 1440 million
litres of water per day from the River Cauvery, which is approximately 85km away and 300m below
the city. BWSSB officially says it incurs a production cost of Rs. 28/KL to pump the water into the
city, treat and distribute, but in reality, it could be more. However, the water demand of the city is

not completely met through Cauvery water and the deficit is met by groundwater which is estimated
to be another 500-600 MLD (Source).
While there are no exact quantities to establish the quantity of wastewater generated, it is generally
estimated that 80% of the water supplied returns to the system as wastewater. Thus, ~1640 MLD is
the wastewater that the city generates.
The regional topography of Bengaluru is characterized by three principal valleys viz.
Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley (KC Valley), Hebbal Nagawara Valley (HN Valley) and
Vrishabhavathi Valley (V-Valley), and is formed in a manner such that the wastewater generated
flows down without any major pumping requirements, and is collected in 29 existing sewage
treatment plants (STPs) located within the valleys. The current functional treatment capacity is
estimated to be 1182.5 MLD at the BWSSB STPs (Appendix 1). There are some STPs set up by the
BBMP and the capacity of these plants is 10.55 MLD (Appendix 2). There is also another STP set up
by BEL treating 10 MLD. Hence, the total wastewater treatment capacity is estimated to be ~1200
MLD. In addition, there are 611 decentralized STPs at the apartment and gated layout scale where
wastewater of 109 MLD gets treated2
. However, estimates and the available numbers suggest that
the existing treatment capacity is less than the wastewater generated within the city. There are
treatment plants currently under construction to increase volume with an additional 544 MLD,
totaling to 1726.5 MLD (by 2023).
Sl.No Name Existing Under Construction Proposed Total ( mld)
1 K&C valley 536.5 159 29 724.5
2 V. Valley 426 153 58 637
3 Hebbal Valley 220 108 37 365
Total 1726.5
Table 2: Details of STPs under the three valleys - viz. Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley (KC Valley),
Hebbal Nagawara Valley (HN Valley) and Vrishabhavathi Valley (V-Valley)
2
A REPORT OF MONITORING COMMITTEE ON PERFORMANCE OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS IN
THE APARTMENTS AND OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS IN BBMP LIMITS OF BANGALORE, 2012

Figure 5: A list and location of STPs in Bengaluru
Of the BWSSB STPs, the Koramangala-Challaghatta (KC) valley STP, located near Bellandur and
Varthur lake is the oldest STP set up in 1970. Bellandur and then Varthur lakes (apparently the
largest water bodies of the city i.e. 367 and 190 hectares respectively) and thus the STPs located
near the lake form the end of the chain lakes and wastewater flows in KC valley catchment before it
drains to Kelavarapalli reservoir and Krishnagiri dam in Tamil nadu and becomes a main feeder to
Dakshina Pinakini River. This partially treated wastewater from KC valley catchment (Estimated to
be ~500 MLD (Ramachandra et al, 2017)) flowing through Dakshina Pinakini/South Pennar
watershed is picked up and is used for irrigation by farmers, sometimes formally as in
Samethanahalli and Bairamanagala and mostly informally, through short and long distance
pumping. Farmers along the wastewater streams of the city of Bengaluru, refer to it as perennial
climate proof waters.
Looking at the availability of large volumes of treated wastewater and its possibility for agriculture
reuse in the drought prone districts of Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Anekal, the Government of
Karnataka (GoK), has launched an ambitious lift irrigation to transfer secondary treated wastewater
from Bengaluru for groundwater recharge in the drought affected areas.

Name of the scheme Allocated water (MLD) Proposed
tanks for
filling
Tanks filled
till date
(July 2021)
Water
pumped
(MLD)
Irrigation Industries
Koramangala &
Challaghatta valley
(KC Valley) for Kolar
400 40 134 82 310
Hebbar Nagavara
Valley (HN Valley)
170 40 65 2 25
Koramangala &
Challaghatta valley
(KC Valley) for Anekal
120 - 69 Work in progress
KR Puram project for
Hoskote
40 - 30 Tender in process
Total 730 80
Table 3: Details of proposed secondary treated wastewater transfer projects under MID
Figure 6: Water balance chart for Bengaluru

1.3 KC Valley treated wastewater transfer project
The initial treatment capacity of the KC valley STP was 248 MLD which was later upgraded by 60
MLD. The STP is set to increase the capacity to 150 MLD making it the STP with highest treatment
capacity in Bengaluru.
The KC valley scheme utilises 440 MLD of secondary treated wastewater from the STPs located in
the K & C Valley viz. 310 MLD from Belur Nagasandra/KC Valley STP, 40 MLD from Kadubeesanahalli
Ph-1 STP and another 90 MLD from Bellandur STP, will be pumped in stages and transferred to fill
134 existing tanks in the districts of Kolar and Chikkaballapur - many of which have been dry since
the past successive droughts. The Rs 1,342 crore project was inaugurated in June 2018 and
currently, 82 lakes have been filled with 310 MLD of total 440 MLD, as of July 2021 (in person
communication).
Figure 7: KC Valley - Bellandur and Varthur lakes and STP
The objective of the project is to rejuvenate the depleted groundwater in the drought-hit Kolar
region by allowing the treated water to percolate down from these lakes and tanks, and then be
made available to farmers through open wells and borewells, for irrigation and agricultural use. The
industrial zone near Narsapura in Kolar District will also get access to some of this groundwater for
industrial purposes (40 million litres per day).

The water reaching Kolar is strictly not for direct irrigation because once it reaches one lake, it has
to percolate and through gravity-based flow, move to fill subsequent tanks. It benefits farmers only
by raising the groundwater level in the region.
Figure 8: Koramangala - Challaghatta Valley Treated Wastewater transfer Project map
This wastewater transfer project is one of the first in India to formally use secondary treated
wastewater at such large volumes to fill the tank and river ecosystem and provide water for
agricultural use in the drought prone hinterland of the city. It sees the obligation of a city to the
farmers who grow food and vegetables for it, understands the distress that they are facing due to
drought and water shortage and seeks to provide nutrient rich treated wastewater for their
irrigation needs, thus ensuring livelihood security for the farmers and food security for the city.
As the project gets implemented completely, the tanks in Kolar will become full, and the impact of
this can be seen on the groundwater in the region, the biodiversity of the locale and also on the
livelihoods in the region. The impact will also be seen on the two rivers, Dakshina Pinakini and Palar
which can expect minimum flows and thus changes on the livelihood of the farmers in and around
the rivers will also be seen.

Figure 9: BWSSB Sewage Treatment Plant in Bellandur (Source: MID)
Figure 10: Uddapanahalli, Jodikrishnapura and Narsapura lakes filled with treated wastewater from
KC valley project (Source: MID)

2.0 Research Questions & Methodology
2.1 Research Objective
The research seeks to study both the informal and the formal use (KC Valley project) of wastewater
by farmers and understand it from the climate mitigation lens. The research will study:
● the health and associated environmental risks,
● the crop choices made by farmers,
● the impact of this treated wastewater transfer on aquifers and groundwater,
● the economic and ecological benefits if any,
● the policy and investment directions which can be taken to better manage and reuse
wastewater, the standards currently in use for wastewater treatment and
● the possibility of fit for purpose standards.
● identify the risks associated with the KC Valley project and the measures needed under
WHO guidelines to manage the risks.
● look at replicability of this project and the role of treated and untreated wastewater as a
climate change mitigation measure for agriculture.
2.2 Research questions
1. Is the project in alignment with the approved urban wastewater reuse policy of the
Government of Karnataka?
2. Can urban wastewater reuse policies for states and cities be better informed with
experience from this project?
3. Are proper monitoring systems in place to ensure that wastewater gets treated effectively
and meets the norms set for irrigation of crops proposed to be grown using them? Would
online monitoring at the sewage treatment plants and the first pumping stations help in
ensuring mitigation of health and environmental risks. Does the treated waste-water meet
the norms set by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board for secondary treated
wastewater as per its latest guidelines.
4. Are the guidelines recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the safe
reuse of treated wastewater in agriculture strictly implemented including the Sanitation
Safety Plan (SSP) which is the manual for safe use and disposal of wastewater, greywater
and excreta?
5. Are drinking water sources, such as open wells and bore-wells continuously monitored on a
regular basis for indicator parameters such as Nitrates and faecal coliform /e.coli to ensure
that BIS-10500 drinking water standards are met at all times?
6. Would a water balance study for each lake with aquifer mapping help in understanding the
recharge zone and the benefit area as well as overflow design required during rains?

7. How will the experience of the Jakkur lake model where such a system has been
implemented be useful to design for the KC valley project (Ramachandra et al, 2014)?
8. Are crops such as mulberry and flowers, which are non-edible being considered, along with
horticultural crops which are less likely to face contamination issues with the application of
the wastewater to be grown (Rajaram et al, 2014).
9. How can wastewater be seen as a climate proofing measure? What are the farmers'
perceptions about reuse of treated wastewater?
10. What are the similarities and differences in reuse of wastewater between KC valley
wastewater transfer project and informal wastewater reuse practices seen in and around
Dakshina Pinakini River?
11. What are the design, water quality and water quantity, ecological parameters, legal, financial
and institutional aspects that need to be considered for tanks receiving/to receive treated
wastewater?
2.3 Research Methodology
The research involved studying formal and informal reuse of wastewater as a climate mitigation
strategy. The approach was to document formal wastewater transfer and reuse project (referred to
as Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley or KC Valley wastewater transfer project) and informal reuse of
wastewater in and around Dakshina Pinakini through primary and secondary data collection. The
research aimed to study the impact on aquifers and the availability of groundwater for farmers,
study the crop cultivation pattern of farmers and with field interviews, understand the farmers
response to use of wastewater as a climate change mitigation measure as well as to understand the
KC valley project’s impact on agriculture.
Particular focus is also given to understand the nature of environmental impacts arising from filling
up of treated wastewater in these lakes, comparing it with lakes that are rainfed and seasonal.
Since the KC Valley project focuses on tanks as a point of intervention, it was also thought to
compare and contrast it with another tank based project executed to mitigate drought in the district
of Kolar. This project was titled ‘Karnataka Community based tank management’ project supported
by the World Bank (referred to as JSYS as the project established a JSYS institution) and carried out
with active participation of the local community and the civil society groups. The intent was to
highlight the differences or similarities in approaches of both the projects and use the learnings
from the JSYS project as recommendations for possible areas of improvement for the KC Valley
project.
A total of 6 lakes were chosen for the study. Following categorisation was made for detailed
documentation and to understand the impact:

● Formal use of wastewater:
○ To understand the ‘before’ situation (wherein lakes are yet to receive treated
wastewater from the KC valley project) - Holali lake, Holali village (13.121243,
78.271702) and Doddakere lake, Markalaghatta village (13.069562, 78.318662) and
the farmers around it
○ To understand the ‘after’ situation (wherein lakes are already receiving treated
wastewater from the KC Valley project) - Lakshmisagara lake (13.122496,
77.962329) and farmers around it
● To understand JSYS as a drought mitigation strategy and its impact (on farmers, agriculture,
groundwater) - Hosakere lake, Pichguntlahalli village (13.096852, 78.306291) and Chikka
Hosakere, Honashettihalli village (13.115935, 78.304389) which were revived as part of
JSYS program.
● Informal use of wastewater: Farmers downstream of Varthur lake in and around Dakshina
Pinakini River
For environmental impact study two types of lakes were selected : i) lakes receiving treated
wastewater and ii) lakes which are rain-fed.
● The following lakes which are receiving treated water were studied: Lakshmisagara lake
(13.122496, 77.962329), which is receiving treated water since 2018 and Perjanahalli lake
(13.205983, 77.993338), which is receiving treated water since 2019/2020
● The following lakes receiving rainwater were studied: Holali lake (13.116818, 78.277608),
currently rainfed but is soon to receive treated wastewater and Chikka hosakere lake
(13.115935, 78.304389) which was rejuvenated through JSYS program

Figure 11: Key map indicating the study area and documented lakes/villages
Data collection
The methodology used for this research was a combination of on-field interviews with help from
two local NGOs in Kolar (Asha from Arohana Grameena Abhivrudhi Samsthe; Bharathi and Girija,
from Grama Vikasa), web-based/online discussions and secondary literature review. The literature
review included themes of climate change in India, Climate change in Karnataka, Drought
Vulnerability report of Karnataka by KSNDMC, drought management manuals and various other
literature reviews written on the impact of climate variability on water management, agriculture,
livelihood, gender etc.
The field visits were limited due to constraints of the ongoing pandemic, and were done with
extreme care with safety precautions at all times.
The interviews were conducted with:
a. Farmers directly or indirectly influenced by the Koramangala-Challaghatta Valley treated
wastewater transfer project
b. Farmers using wastewater in and around Dakshina Pinakini River
c. Scientist Dr. Prabhu from Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Center (KSNDMC)
d. Farmers, Tank User Group (TUG) members associated with JSYS program

e. Mr Rao from Grama Vikas, an NGO in Mulbagal taluk of Kolar district associated with JSYS
program
f. Engineers from MID, BWSSB and Indian Institute of Science (IISc)
The interviews included 10-15 farmers in the command area of each of these lakes/rivers. The
interviews have been spread to include farmers who own the land (farmers with borewells,
openwells and others with no groundwater source), wage labourers and landless farmers, women
farmers, small and big farmers.
Questionnaires were developed for each of the stakeholders (Appendix 3). A questionnaire for the
interview of farmers in and around lakes already receiving treated wastewater and for farmers
using wastewater from Dakshina Pinakini focused on the current situation and socio-economic state
of farmers, situation before and after treated wastewater pumping was initiated in the tanks in
terms of cropping pattern, impact on groundwater quantity and quality, understanding gender and
labour impact and perceptions about the wastewater transfer project. In addition, for farmers
around Dakshina Pinakini, the questions were also asked about the coping mechanisms of farmers
to the quality and quantity flow, investments made informally for pumping and use of wastewater
from Dakshina Pinakini, the economic and ecological benefits if any.
Questionnaire for farmers in and around lakes rejuvenated through the JSYS program focused on
current situation and socio-economic information of farmers, the process of JSYS and perceptions of
positive and negative outcomes of the project, and impact on cropping pattern, livelihood, water
availability and drought mitigation due to the project.
While the questionnaires were developed for all the stakeholders, they served as a guide to proceed
with the conversation and a lot of interviews were conducted in an unstructured manner. During
the interviews, notes were taken and audio and video recordings were also done to document. Some
of the recorded interviews have been transcribed.
For the environmental impact study, assistance of three experts was taken. Chandu Bandi is a
software professional by training and an avid bird watcher and naturalist by passion. Hareesha A S
is pursuing a PhD on phenological aspects in Ficus species, works with Nature Conservation
Foundation (NCF) and is passionate about birds and insects. Suma Rao is an avid mountaineer,
sports enthusiast and is passionate about biodiversity and is an avid bird watcher.
Visual observation of the flora and fauna was carried out in the project area as demarcated as
follows: 1. Biodiversity within the lake 2. Biodiversity along the immediate periphery of the lake
(around the Bund) 3. Biodiversity beyond the Bund. The biodiversity list included plant species,
insects, butterflies, reptiles, dragonflies, damselflies and birds. All data collected has been recorded
as checklists on open source softwares - www.ebird.org and www.inaturalist.org under each lake
area. The study was done over a short period of 8 months, from August 2020 - March 2021. A total
of 3 visits were conducted for each lake - The first in August 2020, during monsoon, second visit in
December 2020, late monsoon and third visit in March 2021, just before summer.

After all the interviews and field studies were completed, the quantitative and qualitative data was
collated and analysed from the Social, Technical, Institutional, Financial, Legal and Environmental
(STIFLE) framework.
The STIFLE framework has been interpreted in the following manner for documenting the impact in
all projects:
● Social - Impact on income from agriculture for both land owning farmers and labourers,
impact on food and water security, impact on fishermen and livestock rearers, the coping
mechanisms to mitigate effects of droughts, employment opportunities and inclusion of
women and marginalized groups
● Technical - Engineering/plumbing design of the project, various treatment methods adopted
for wastewater, standards for water quality, study of impact on aquifer
● Institutional - Governance mechanisms from wastewater treatment to its use by farmers
● Financial - Overall Projects costs for setting up, o&m and infrastructure required at the farm
level
● Legal - Laws governing the framework of wastewater treatment and reuse, laws around
groundwater management and failure redressal mechanisms
● Environmental - Design of the project to enhance local biodiversity, changes in groundwater
levels and recharge zone of the project
The following sections elaborate on the KC Valley project, JSYS project, informal wastewater reuse,
environmental biodiversity documentation, learnings from each of them and recommendations for
KC Valley project.

PART A
3.0 Documentation of KC valley project
Introduction
The KC Valley Project is aimed to divert treated effluent water from Koramangala-Challaghatta
Valley, to the parched districts of Kolar and Chikkaballapur. Starting in 2018, more than 300 million
litres per day of a targeted 440 MLD of this secondary treated domestic sewage water is being
transferred from Bengaluru to the adjoining, parched district of Kolar and parts of Chikkaballapur.
This water is then pumped into 134 lakes scattered around Kolar, many of them left dry by
successive droughts. The water reaching Kolar is strictly not for direct irrigation but meant to
benefit the farmers by recharging the groundwater levels in this region.
The wastewater is being pumped through 6 intermediate pump houses through underground pipes,
travelling for 124 km length. A 66 KV power substation aids lifting the water from the STPs, with a
huge surge tank near Hoskote. The first lake in the series is 43 km away from the STP, from whereon
it is redistributed and pumped up to RP 1 (Malur and Bangarpet) and RP2. As of 2021 July, 82 lakes
have been filled with treated wastewater.
To establish a baseline for the study so that impact of the KC valley project can be understood in a
context, two categories of lakes were chosen:
● To understand the before situation (wherein lakes are yet to receive treated wastewater
from the KC valley project) - Holali lake, Holali village and Doddakere lake, Markalgatta
village and the farmers around it
● To understand the after situation (wherein lakes are already receiving treated wastewater
from the KC Valley project) - Lakshmisagara lake and farmers around it
Figure 12: Interviews being conducted with farmers/labourers in Marakalagatta village
3.1 Lakes that are yet to receive treated WW
To understand the situation of lakes that are yet to receive treated WW and to understand its impact
(on farmers, agriculture, groundwater) - Holali lake, Holali village and Doddakere lake, Markalgatta
village were chosen for the study. Both these lakes have not undergone any rejuvenation under
previous projects.

3.1.1 Primary details about the Lakes studied
Doddakere lake: In Marakalagatta village, Doddakere (command area of 25.6 ha) has 100 farmers
in the command area. The lake is in a poor condition as the bund is completely overgrown with
shrubs and bushes and due to drought, the lake has been mostly dry for the last 9-10 years, as per
the narrative. As the lake is not maintained, despite a good monsoon this year, the lake has
underperformed as it has not filled up more than 10-20% and the rains haven’t been able to be put
to productive use. Paddy has been rarely cultivated due to lack of water. Even this year, as there
were late rains, many have not been able to grow paddy this time either.
Figure 13: Doddakere during the beginning of Oct 2020, only partially filled with water
Holali lake: Holali lake is about 400 acres in area with a capacity to hold 10.6MLD of water. While
agriculture is the primary occupation, the land use around Holali has changed drastically over the
last decade, with several new land uses have come up like resorts, brick kilns, cement brick
factories, resorts/estates etc. There is also a stadium coming up in the vicinity of Holali lake. The
lake has been dry through consecutive drought years, but has filled up and overflowed post
monsoon 2020.
For the last 150 years, Holali was leased to Bharat Gold Mines Limited (BGML) through a signed
agreement, for meeting its water needs. There are no farmers who use the lake water directly, but
only use it indirectly through borewells and open wells. As the contract has expired, the lake now
belongs to Holali village panchayat but fishing contract is currently with Bethamangala/BGML.

Figure 14: Holali lake, Sept 2020; The overflow channel/Palar river from Holali lake
3.1.2 Groundwater situation
In both the lakes, we found that each farmer has more than 2-4 borewells drilled over a period of
time, due to previous ones failing to yield water. Many instances of borewells failing at the time of
drilling itself are also common stories. The borewells are dug to a minimum depth of 800-1000ft
and yet, do not ensure a guaranteed water supply during the summer months. However, the farmers
around both lakes expressed that the borewell yield is higher if and when there’s a good monsoon
and there’s water in the lake.
Markalaghatta has a few openwells upstream of Doddakere, which have been unused, due to lack of
water. In the case of Holali, several openwells were identified along the main stream of the river
from which farmers used to use water for their agricultural lands earlier, but have not had any
water, since the lake bed has been dry for the past 4-5 years.

Figure 15: Openwells in the upstream of Doddakere with monsoon water
Holali Lake has a huge command area and the presence of water in the lake has a direct impact on
open wells and borewells in a radius of 4-5 km around the lake. During the interviews, many
farmers have reported that the groundwater is now at 300-400ft in the borewells from the earlier
1200ft, as there’s full water in the lake due to good rains in 2020.
A water quality test conducted for one of the borewells 400m from Holali lake indicated high
presence of TDS (1590mg/L), Total Hardness(1061 mg/L), Calcium(302 mg/L),
Magnesium(74mg/L), Chlorine(427mg/L), Total Alkalinity (285 mg/L) and Nitrate(94 mg/L)
(Appendix 4).
3.1.3 Livelihoods
In Markalaghatta, agriculture is the primary source of income, but lean periods also see households
going for labour work in stone quarries, construction. Primarily, ragi, maize and fodder is grown.
Tomatoes, Cabbage, Beans and a few other vegetables are grown by the farmers here, if they have a
supply of borewell water.
Figure 16: (left) Tomato being grown using borewell water (right) Ragi plantation and
Tomato plantation using borewell water in the command area of Doddakere, Marakalghatta

In Holali, there is a mix of small and big farmers. While some are dependent only on monsoon,
others have multiple borewells that help them grow at least one or two commercial crops in the
year. All farmers cultivate ragi or/and paddy for their household consumption. Apart from ragi, the
other commonly grown crops are tomatoes, onions, cauliflowers, potatoes, ladies finger, mangoes,
flowers, mulberry, etc. Some farmers have greenhouse setups for their farmlands.
Figure 17: (left) Mulberry grown using borewell water (right) Ragi plantation using borewell
water in the command area of Holali lake
3.1.4 Impact of Drought and Mitigation:
With these lakes being dry for many years of drought, this past decade has seen the drilling of many
borewells in the region. Due to lean monsoon/drought years, paddy has not been grown for the last
5-6 years. Any produce grown is kept for their household consumption. Many farmers have also
planted eucalyptus in the dry land, where there is no source of water.
During drought years, many farmers have only cultivated one crop a year and during consecutive
drought, have left their farms fallow and taken up work in the nearby stone quarries, estates,
poultry farms and cement/brick factories. Many farmers have an additional source of income from
these jobs even when they cultivate their lands.
In Holali, 20 families used to entirely depend on fisheries as their livelihood but now their source of
income has shifted to daily labour work. There are families belonging to the shepherd community,
who used to depend on the lake and also the nearby forest area for grazing. The forest is also slowly
diminishing, therefore leading to disappearance of these grasslands and directly affecting the
shepherd communities in the region.
“It has been more than 10 years since our lake has filled up. Only this year due to good rains, we have
had plenty of water in the lake this time. In our village, there are about 100 households, most of
whom have agricultural land in the command area. There are both big and small farmers. We have
not grown rice for the last decade and even this time, only some of them have been able to cultivate

their land as there was heavy rain only towards the late monsoon season. There are not many wells
in the command area but about 6-7 borewells, which have had water during monsoon. The small
farmers usually grow maize and also grow fodder for cattle. Others have also leased out their land
on which Tomatoes, Beans etc. are being grown using borewell water. During good monsoon years,
all farmers grow ragi but this is mostly sufficient for household consumption only.” - Shankarappa,
farmer, Markalaghatta village
“We grow rain-fed crops such as ragi and keep this only
for household consumption. This has been the case since
my grandparents and parents’ generation as well. The
lake used to have good water 15 years ago, but since the
last 5 years, the lake has been dry” - Nagamma, farmer,
Markalaghatta
3.2 Lakes that have received treated WW
To understand the situation of lakes that have received treated wastewater and to understand its
impact (on farmers, agriculture, groundwater) - Lakshmisagara, the first lake of the series that is
receiving treated wastewater from Bengaluru, was chosen for the study. The pipeline from
Bengaluru has its outlet into this lake.
3.2.1 Primary details about the Lakes studied
Lakshmisagara lake is a small lake of about 20-30 acres in area, and about 45km away from the
Bellandur STP, to which a 2400mm dia pipeline pumps up the treated wastewater to. Lakshmisagara
lake was dry for many years through the drought but has been filled with treated WW since the past
two years.
Prior to the project, the entire land area here was covered in eucalyptus plantations. Agriculture
was not in practice. Groundwater tables had drastically dropped to below 1000ft.

Figure 18: Left: Aerial view of Lakshmisagara lake; Right: Outlet from lake
Figure 19: Map showing Lakshmisagara lake and surrounding agricultural lands

The existing borewells around the lake have been dug to a depth of more than 800-1000ft, with
many stories of failed borewells, with a decline of both shallow and deep aquifers..
Post the entry of treated wastewater there has been an increase in groundwater table, and the
shallow aquifers have seen an immediate impact. We have noticed that all the open wells around the
lake are brimming with water throughout the year and even overflow during the monsoon season.
Farmers mentioned that their borewell yield has increased.
Speaking to one of the farmers, we understood that these openwells are being shared between 3-4
farmers, who are pumping water all the way to their land. With limited people with access to water,
a groundwater market is being created here. This is feasible as the openwells fill up almost as
immediately as you draw water out of it. Drip irrigation systems are in practice and are followed for
both open wells and borewells.
Figure 20: Openwells in the vicinity of Lakshmisagara with full water throughout the year

Groundwater influence zone
As reported by the farmer, the groundwater recharge zone is at 2kms. Mr. Prakash has farmlands
of 6 acre 2km away, with a borewell going up to 1060feet in depth. Borewell was yielding 1-1.5
inches of water and post-treated wastewater entering Lakshmi Sagara lake; his borewell is
yielding 4inches of water continuously. Mr. Prakash's farm is located in Bairasandra, 1.5 kms from
Lakshmisagara lake and he has seen water in the open wells 500 meters further ahead of his
farm.
“I have removed the eucalyptus plantation of 3 acres and am setting up a commercial organic farm
with crops like coconuts, ornamental trees, flowers and fruits and switched to drip irrigation. The
treated wastewater is an agent of economic growth, and is a boon to help me set up a resort and
hotel here. Narasapura lake which is getting treated wastewater is now made as a dam and has got
huge investments to make it a tourist place like something similar to KRS dam of Mysore. He says he
would employ 300-600 workers per annum.” - Prakash, farmer, Bairamangala
Prakash, next to his borewell which is now yielding 3 times more, post KC valley project start
3.2.3 Livelihoods
Agriculture has been the primary livelihood in this region. However, in the recent decades, the
district agricultural economy has witnessed a 'Silk & Milk revolution' with growing of mulberry and
mushrooming of dairies. Agriculture was not in practice, or only a single crop was grown during
monsoon (Ragi and Maize). With subsequent droughts and lack of water availability, the borewell
depths went deeper and the number of borewells increased to meet the irrigation requirements of
these crops. Recent years also saw many farmers cultivating Eucalyptus on a large scale for its
commercial value as a timber crop but this has depleted the groundwater table.
After the treated wastewater was transferred into the lake, land use has been changing and more
farmers have readopted their land and taken up commercial agriculture. Now all farmers are

growing 3-4 crops a year. Farmers are growing commercially viable crops like tomatoes, beans,
cauliflower, chillies and many other vegetables. Some farmers are also growing flowers like
Marigold and Jasmine and mulberry plants for silkworm rearing.
Fisheries has been contracted to a local farmer, from the Gram Panchayat. Around 15,000 fishlings
of Rohu, Mrigal, Catla and Jalebi variety have been released into the lake, which sell for Rs 150 a kg.
retail and Rs 70 wholesale.
Figure 21: Agricultural lands nearby Lakshmisagara lake uses water from wells, with drip irrigation
Figure 22: Fisheries in Lakshmisagara, contracted to a local farmer by gram panchayat
3.3 Observations on the KC Valley Project:
In the case of lakes which have not undergone rejuvenation earlier but are planned to receive
treated wastewater as part of KC valley project, we observed that the tanks tend to underperform
even during years of good rainfall as they are poorly maintained. As observed, Doddakere lake of
Markalaghatta has only filled up 10-20% only in 2020, despite a good rainfall.
The farmers that we interacted with in Markalaghatta and Holali were aware about the KC valley
project and the planned repairs works for receiving the treated wastewater. The groundwater

situation is expected to become better and most farmers believe that their borewells (even the
failed ones) might yield again. The lake has a direct connection with the aquifer, and a filled lake
brings the groundwater levels to as high as 200-300ft below ground level. While many farmers have
expressed that this would definitely help boost their agricultural activities, some have expressed
concern regarding the quality of water. Many farmers also believe that water quality wouldn’t be an
issue, as it would have flowed through the natural channels before reaching their lakes. The farmers
would be able to grow 3-4 crops per year if the lake is full 365 days.
“KC valley water would help increase the borewell yield.
Many farmers believe that water quality wouldn’t be
an issue, as it would have flowed through the natural
channels before reaching Holali lake. The farmers
would be able to grow 3-4 crops per year if the lake is
full 365 days.” – Subramani
“I own three acres of land that is irrigated with borewell
water. Borewell water is available at 400ft this year, but has
been dry until now as we had no water in the lake for the last
4-5 years. I also have a 100 year old stone-lined open well
which is closed up now. I am growing mulberry, ragi, corn,
vegetables and spinach. During lean monsoon years, only ragi
is grown. The KC valley project is very useful and will benefit
farmers in a huge way, especially around Holali lake, as we
see an immediate impact on water availability.” - Chalapathy,
47, farmer, Holali
“Once the lakes are full, it would benefit farmers who have
borewells. Farmers can cultivate throughout the year. The
water is getting filtered, but we are not sure about the quality
of treatment. If water flows through channels and then
reaches the lakes, it would have purified itself by then.” –
Kenchappa, 68, Markalaghatta

“KC valley project might be wastewater but by the time it comes to our lake, it would have gotten
treated and filtered through its natural channels. It will be useful for all farmers in increasing
agricultural production and grow 2-3 crops in a year” - Shankarappa, Markalaghatta
Lakshmisagara lake has been receiving treated wastewater for one and half to two years. In three
months of the lake being filled with water, water level in openwells increased and in six months
water level in borewells increased. Now farmers are cultivating throughout the year, it is profitable
and their level of confidence has increased. Farmers have shifted from eucalyptus plantations and
prefer to grow commercial crops now. Land under food crops such as paddy and ragi is decreasing
as farmers find it more viable to buy ragi and other pulses from stores or from ration shops.
“The KC valley project has benefitted all farmers in Lakshmisagar as they have taken up agriculture
again. The groundwater level has increased. Before the project, we used to have very little water in
our wells during summer months. Now - be it summer or monsoon season - there’s always water in
the openwells and overflowing sometimes. There has been no problem with both quantity and
quality of the water.
Previously, the borewell depth used to go beyond 800-1000ft. Now we find water even at 300ft
depth. Sometimes, we find the first gap even at 100ft. Infact, many farmers prefer not to drill
borewells now and instead use water from openwells. I have an open well, which 3 neighbour
farmers also draw water from and yet the open well is always overflowing. There is no problem with
water anymore.
Previously, all farmers had planted eucalyptus on their lands because it was commercially beneficial
and were doing labour work in other places. This helped provide a good income. Now they have all
come back, removed the eucalyptus plantations and started growing commercial crops again” -
Manju, 35, farmer, Lakshmisagara

3.3.1 Legal, Institutional and Financial framework:
The 1342 Cr budget treated wastewater transfer project is funded by the Government of Karnataka.
The funding covers capital costs of the infrastructure implementation of the project i.e. plumbing to
the lakes, setting up pump houses, desilting/dewatering/bund strengthening of the lakes prior to
the pumping, etc. However, the project does not explicitly mention about the operation and
management expenses that will be incurred over the years and who will manage those expenses.
The organisational structure of the project includes two major agencies - Minor Irrigation
Department (MID) and the BWSSB. The major responsibility is of Minor irrigation department
(MID) which is responsible to spreadhead the design and implementation of the project i.e.
identifying the tanks for filling up, laying pipelines to transfer the wastewater, setting up pumping
stations and jackwells for further pumping, taking relevant permissions from roads department or
highways for digging of the road for laying pipelines, etc. MID also regularly monitors the water
quantity and the quality in the borewells near the lake. A team from Indian Institute of Science
(IISc) was also involved as a technical expert which focused on conducting and visualizing the
hydrology of the region.
BWSSB is incharge of the sewage treatment plants (STPs) from where the wastewater is to be
transferred. It is the responsibility of the BWSSB to augment the capacity of the STP so as to provide
adequate volume of water for transfer, conduct daily water quality tests so as to ensure good water
quality that adheres to the CPHEEO water quality standards set up for agriculture reuse. The local
governance institution i.e. Gram Panchayat is also looped into this entire project so that further
monitoring and maintenance becomes easier.
Additionally, the STPs are currently being retrofitted to meet the new CPHEEO standards for water
quality, the cost of which is being borne by BWSSB which was not part of the project cost initially
envisaged.
A case on the project was halted by the Supreme Court in January 2019 due to reports of the
presence of heavy metals in the recycled water and its likely effect on groundwater sources. The
court lifted its stay in April 2019.
3.3.2 Engineering Design:
The design of the tanks for receiving treated wastewater such as bund strengthening, desilting of
lake bed, repairs/redesign of waste weirs etc was handled by MID. The sluice gate of these tanks
have been closed, as there is no direct irrigation anymore.
IISC involvement included studying detailed project report (DPRs) and guidance on the technical
design of merging the STPs from two different lakes to a single pipeline, which includes the pipe
sizes, pump capacities, transformer loads, structural design of the pump houses, pipeline quality,
civil engineering problems, nala crossing etc (in person comm. with Prof Mohan Kumar, IISC)

By design, the KC valley project benefits only those in the influence zone of the lake and those with
access to groundwater either via open wells or borewells. The project design does not include
hydrogeology and aquifer mapping study which could help better establish the influence zone and
the impact on recharge due to the lake being full. Furthermore, since it is the secondary treated
wastewater, the impact on the groundwater sources in the village used for drinking purposes is not
thought through completely in the imagination of the project.
“It would be useful for all departments to come together and do a baseline survey of groundwater
table and aquifers and water quality in that region, which will help understand the impact of the KC
valley project” - Prof. Mohan Kumar
There should be a push to move towards using the shallow aquifer via open wells and incentive to
use drip irrigation. The overall energy required for pumping for an open well is much lesser
compared to a borewell, however the data needs to be calculated.???
Farmer Krishniah with his two open wells(one for each of his sons) is using open well water for
drinking
"Lakshmisagara lake has good quality water. But it used to hold water for only 60days a year. KC
valley project is seen as a boon and has helped the farmers with agriculture. The opposite political
parties said the quality of KC valley project would be a concern which delayed the entry of the
treated wastewater I have benefitted from the project and my open well of 24ft in depth has water
now, which was 8ft bgl earlier. I grow all the varieties of crops like potatoes, tomatoes, beans etc on
my 3 acre land, and grow three crops a year now. This is also benefiting wage laborers as they are
employed throughout the year. We also share groundwater with other farmers who don't have
groundwater sources." -Farmer Krishnaiah, Lakshmisagara

3.3.3 Livelihood
The KC valley project intended to benefit farmers by recharging groundwater. It has been observed
that with the increase in groundwater table, farmers have been able to grow 3-4 crops in a year. The
duration of agricultural cultivation has increased and hence, employment has increased. Livestock
rearers are being benefited, as it was observed that farmers are growing fodder crops like maize
throughout the year and there is an increase in water availability for livestock.
“Before the KC valley project, I had planted Eucalyptus on all of the land, which I completely
removed. Since we have water in the lake now, many have taken up growing commercial crops. I
have one openwell which is 100 years old. I also have a borewell of 850ft depth which now yields 1.5
inch of water. I grow rain-fed crops during the monsoon. Post KC Valley I have been growing
commercial crops like Beans, Capsicum, Tomato, Potato etc. on 3 acres of land. I hire labourers as
and when necessary, which is almost 40 man days of work per yield.” - Ravi, farmer
3.3.4 Social Inclusion:
KC Valley water is benefiting both land owners as well as landless farmers. Landless people are
working as wage labourers and due to the availability of treated wastewater, and 3-4 crop cycles
being grown per year, there is employment throughout the year. Earlier labourers were employed
for just three months and now they are getting a minimum of three days a week of work per week.
In Lakshmisagara labourers are not sufficient in number and are hired from other villages.
While it was not a direct intended outcome of the KC valley project, it has been observed that both
men and women are getting employed equally. Wage rate is at Rs.300 for women and Rs.600 for
men as it was mentioned that certain activities like ploughing, etc. require men more than women.
However, it is yet to be understood how the increased employment and household income, with
wages being contributed from women as well, is perceived by the family members, and if it is seen
as positive by the women. The drinking water facilities need to be critically looked at and see if the
burden of women fetching water is also lessened.
3.3.5 Water quality
IISc has been given a project to do an EIA assessment of the KC valley project, to closely monitor
groundwater levels and to understand groundwater quality and its impact on ecology through this
project (in person comm. With Prof Mohan Kumar, IISC). Panchayats are also being given water
quality kits to monitor the lakes.
3.3.6 Design for Environment:
The KC valley project does not explicitly incorporate elements of environment like plantation along
the bund, wetlands, islands, etc. in the design of the lake to enhance flora and fauna around the lake.
However, it has been observed that due to the presence of the water in the lake, there is more
biodiversity in and around the lake. We observed over 16 resident water bird species, 6 migrant
water bird species, 68 resident land birds and 13 migrant land birds.

4.0 Study of impact in JSYS rehabilitated lakes
Introduction
Dating back to 1500 BC, tank ecosystems have been a human response to manage water in a
semi-arid landscape and were built to serve as a major source of irrigation. Locally called ‘keres’,
these tanks are a sophisticated system of water collection and storage and were the lifeline of
villages and every household derived benefit from it. These tanks have suffered from sporadic civil
works, little maintenance, changes in land use in the catchment, and lack of community
participation, thereby leading to its decline in irrigated area to less than 35% of the actual command
area (N Nagraj, 2020)
In an attempt to rejuvenate traditional tank systems of Karnataka and provide water sustainability,
the Govt of Karnataka undertook the, ‘Karnataka Community based Tank management project’
(KCBTMP) project.Funded by the World Bank, the project took a structured approach and focused
on rejuvenation of tanks using watershed approach and community participation. The project
rested on the establishment of a semi-autonomous support institution, Jala Samvardhane Yojana
Sangha (JSYS), setting up of Tank user groups (TUGs) and was implemented between 2002 to 2011,
during which 3710 tanks across Karnataka were rehabilitated, of which 1000 are in Kolar district.
This project was well received since lakes contributed to groundwater recharge thereby indirectly
providing a source of water for the people, especially farmers.
The key development objectives of the project was to improve rural livelihoods and reduce poverty
by developing and strengthening community-based approaches to improving and managing
selected tank systems (World Bank report, 2012). The major economic benefits of the project were
in improved agriculture and horticulture production, with respective net income increases,
fisheries, forestry, time savings in fetching water, and livestock.
The project planned to achieve the objectives by implementing the following:
● Establishing sustainable, decentralized management of tank systems. This rehabilitation
process was facilitated by NGOs who set up a team of people to form a cluster facilitation
team (CFT), who worked with 40 tanks each.
● Strengthening community-based institutions (Tank User Groups) to take responsibility for
tank system development and management
● Undertaking tank system improvements by improving the physical and operational
performance of the tanks; facilitating on-farm demonstrations in water management,
agriculture (cropping systems and crop practices) and horticulture development; Providing
training for improved fish farming, provided support and lease money for fish lings,
equipment etc; Creating income generation activities for landless labour, women etc.
The KTCBMP World Bank project developed a set of meta indicators essential to the evaluation of
the success of the project:
1. Self managed and sustainable tank user groups (TUGs) established

2. TUGs established covering atleast 85% of the traditionally marginalized tank users
organized under the tank management institutes
3. Atleast 50% of the tank user group in the upgraded tank command area to increase
production of major crops by 35%
4. Atleast 50% of the tank user group in the upgraded tank command area increased
(incremental) income by 25% of the baseline
5. Atleast 75% of the landless tank user groups increase their income by 50% of the baseline
value via income generation activities (IGAs)
Further, a set of intermediate outcomes were also laid out as a part of the framework:
1. Legal and institutional framework for community-based tank management across the state
established
2. Number of percentage of Tank Management Institutions (TMIs) with Panchayath Raj
Institutions (PRIs) approved action plans for tank rehabilitation and development
3. Atleast 75% of the TUGs established have implementation strategy approved by the TMI,
which includes water use and cropping plans, fee collection plans for O&M and foreshore
maintenance schedules
4. Project monitoring and learning system established, including Integrated Information
Management System (IIMS), learning and sharing forums at different levels of project
management
5. Project implementation procedures and fiduciary aspects are effectively facilitated in at
least 85% tank systems
6. Number of TMIs and TUGs established voluntarily after the Public Rural Appraisal (PRA)
and PLA activities facilitated by Cluster Facilitation Team (CFTs)
7. Number or percentage of poor women in management position both in TMI and TUGs
8. Number or percentage of tanks rehabilitated as per the technical and engineering
specifications
9. Irrigated area increased by at least 25% after rehabilitation
10. Atleast 60% of the farmers practiced double cropping and improved farming practices
11. Atleast 60% of the tanks are used for fishery activities and on avg a minimum of INR 40,000
generated annually
12. Water levels of the surrounding wells increase by 1.5m level, due to recharging effect of lake
To understand the KCBTMP project (JSYS) as a drought mitigation strategy and its impact (on
farmers, agriculture, groundwater) - Hosakere lake, Pichguntlahalli village and Chikka Hosakere,
Honashettihalli village were chosen for the study, which were revived as part of JSYS program
between 2001-2005.
The rejuvenation of these two lakes was done under the guidance of Grama Vikas, an NGO based out
of Mulbagal, Kolar. The CFT team that facilitated the rejuvenation of these two lakes was
interviewed to understand the project design and outcomes for these two specific lakes. Grama
Vikas’s Cluster facilitation team consisted of civil engineer, agricultural engineer, social scientist,
team leader, accounts person and a gender specialist who facilitated the rejuvenation of more than

40 (and 62 additional tanks under NABARD) and provided necessary training and information
regarding the project to the villages.
Figure 23: Asha conducting an interview with one of the farmers downstream of Hosakere
lake, Pichaguntlahalli
4.1 JSYS rejuvenated tanks
4.1.1 Primary details about the lakes/villages
Chikka Hosakere, Honashettihalli and Hosakere, Pichguntlahalli are located in Mulbagal district of
Kolar. These two lakes underwent rejuvenation under the JSYS project between 2002-2005. TUGs
were set up for both tanks and a PRA exercise was conducted to identify the major interventions to
be carried out for the tanks. The rehabilitation work involved silt removal, bund strengthening,
repair of sluice gates, feeder canals, building of access steps etc. The emphasis was also given on
creating awareness to grow Paddy using less water, on drip irrigation and System of Rice
Intensification (SRI). In the specific case of Pichguntlahalli lake, drip irrigation was introduced and
was adopted for all the 34 acres of farmlands in the command area.
Both the lakes have been well maintained and are in good condition currently. Due to good rains in
2020, this lake has seen full water in the lake bed after almost 3-4 years and all the farmers have
been able to plant paddy in the command area this time.

Figure 24: Pichguntlahalli lake full from monsoon 2020; Pichguntlahalli lake showing lake
bed, bund and command area with paddy plantation
Figure 25: Map of Hosakere, Pichguntlahalli village

“All the villagers worked for the JSYS project
and earned wages for their livelihood. The
silt from the lake bed was utilized in the
farmlands. For landless labourers, labourer
wages were paid and also provided with
sheep for rearing.”
- Amarnath, farmer & head of TUG,
Pichguntlahalli lake
Figure 26: Chikka Hosakere lake, Honashettihalli village

Figure 27: Map of Chikka Hosakere, Honashettihalli village
“Before the JSYS project the lake bed itself
was like flat land. Removal of silt from the
lake bed has helped the lake hold more
water and for longer periods of time. The silt
is also used as manure for our farms, which
helps to increase yield in the farmlands. The
bund was also strengthened and made
wider as well. Due to good rains this year,
there is 3 feet of water beneath the sluice
gate level.”
- H V Narayanaswamy, secretary of TUG,
Hosakere, Honashettihalli
The farmers in both villages are dependent on a good monsoon and groundwater as a source of
water. The neeruganti (village waterman; traditional water managers of tanks) system is still in
practice here. Farmers in the command area have been doing a combination of direct irrigation and
rainfed farming traditionally.

In the case of Chikka Hosakere lake, there is a huge rock catchment area which provides a rapid and
clean runoff. One good rain would still allow the water levels to rise in this tank, due to the unique
situation - therefore the lake has never been entirely dry. There are about 5-6 open wells in the
command area, closer to the lake which also have always had water even during summer. This
particular lake has an open well in its lake bed, which has not gone dry even during drought affected
years and therefore offers drinking water security to the village.
“The open well in the lake is 130 years old, going
to a depth of 36ft, of which 24ft is in soil and 12ft
in rocky subsurface. This open well has not dried
till date and provides water even during summer
months. 40 out of 50 households use this as their
drinking water source.”
- Muniyappa, 79 years, resident of Honashettihalli
village
Figure 28: A full open well in the command area of Chikka Hosakere, Honashettihalli
In Honashettihalli village, there are only 12-13 borewells in this village as most of them are
small-marginal farmers (10 farmers interviewed have no borewells or open wells and are entirely
dependent on rainfall for cultivation). Most of the borewells in this village go below a depth of
1000ft, if water isn’t struck at 300-400ft.

In Pichguntlahalli village, most of the borewells go below a depth of 750ft. Many farmers (5 out of
10 interviewed) have mentioned that their borewells have either stopped functioning entirely or
yield only during the monsoon season. There are 36 borewells overall out of which only 25 are
functional - out of these, 12 are drilled by the gram panchayat. 3 borewells are for drinking water
purposes out of which only 1 is yielding right now.
4.1.3 Livelihoods
In both the villages, agriculture is the primary livelihood activity. The main crops grown are ragi,
Paddy and pulses mostly for household consumption and which are rainfed. There are only a few
farmers with a functioning borewell who grow commercial crops (mulberry, beans, tomato), during
good monsoon years. Most farmers do the work themselves and do not hire labourers.
In Chikka Hosakere, most farmers belong to Scheduled Castes and Tribes and Other Backward
Communities, who mainly do subsistence agriculture and grow staple food grains.
Pichguntlahalli village is dominated by the Kuruba - pastoralists, who rear cows and sheep. There is
no scarcity of fodder, as ragi and paddy straw is available, and additional fodder maize is grown
when needed. The landless buy fodder from neighbouring farmers for feeding their cattle. The
animals are taken to the lake for drinking water and washing, except when there’s no water, then
household water is also used for cattle.
Figure 29: Agricultural fields with paddy translation in Chikka Hosakere, Honsahettihalli village, Sept
2020

4.1.4 Impact of Drought and mitigation strategies
Figure 30: Chikka Hosakere with full water (2006); Chika Hosakere completely dry
(2015-2019)
Due to the high variability in monsoon and rainfall patterns, both these villages have been highly
vulnerable to the risks of agricultural crop loss and thus income loss. With small and marginal
farmers who rely mostly on rains for farming, the drought affected years see little or no agricultural
production i.e. only ragi is grown if there’s sufficient rainfall. The farmers use the production of
good years in the subsequent year(s) of lower production, which helps them to be food secure.
Other essential commodities are given by the society (PDS system).
There are only a few farmers who have invested in borewells. Most farmers in this region are not
growing any commercial crops as there’s scarcity of both surface and groundwater resources. A few
of the farmers are employed in the stone quarries nearby, during lean periods.
In Pichguntlahalli village, a strong sense of community and ownership was observed. Decisions are
made with people’s participation and everyone is involved. During drought/lean rainfall years
when there is lesser water in the tank, the villagers collectively decide the area (along with the
neeruganti) that can be irrigated, the choice of crop that can be cultivated and then redistribute the
land that can be irrigated between all the households. The farmers here ensure that the land is
cultivated at least once a year. This has been a practice followed for many years, called the
“Dhamasa system”.
The farmers also practice a barter system wherein each family helps each other during the harvest
season. One family helps another on their agricultural land and the favor is returned, this
minimising and requiring no additional labour for farm work.

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