The ahar-pyne system of irrigation was developed by which dynasty?

Ahar pynes are traditional floodwater harvesting systems indigenous to South Bihar [1], and have been the most important source of irrigation in this region. Ahars are reservoirs with embankments on three sides and are built at the end of drainage lines such as rivulets or artificial works like pynes. Pynes are diversion channels led off from the river for irrigation purposes and for impounding water in the ahars. It is mostly to the credit of these that paddy cultivation has been possible in this otherwise relatively low rainfall area, when compared to North Bihar. The system attained its highest development in the district of Gaya [2]. This article provides an account of the ahar-pyne systems of South Bihar and the need to build organizational and institutional capacities of civil society and government agencies to undertake ahar pyne renovation and management. Ahar Pyne system in Gaya, South Bihar Image courtesy: Hindi Water Portal Agricultural development in South Bihar Agriculture in Bihar has remained stagnant in spite of the rich soil, abundance of easily accessible water and a rich peasant tradition. The stagnation has been ascribed to several factors including the state’s colonial legacy, ecological conditions, demographic pressure and most importantly, the land tenure system and the agrarian structure it supports. These factors are believed to have impeded the transition of Bihar’s agriculture from a semi-feudal to capitalist production system, an essential condi...

Cities around the world and in India are water-stressed and are only able to make stop-gap arrangement to fight the crisis. The problems related to water shortage though they are relatively new but will stay for a considerable period. Community-based water management practices can be the answer to the water crisis problem and need to be revisited. These practices are decades-old and have survived many generations. The issue with such practices is that they are not efficient, are time-consuming and labour intensive contemporarily. Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to solve the problem associated with traditional community-based water management practices. The study discusses the problems associated with the six selected community-based water management practices and the importance of IoT as an assistive technology to solve the issues related to community-based water management practices. Finally, the study proposes strategies to integrate traditional community-based water management practices with modern technology which can be used during and post COVID-19 pandemic. The practical implication of the study can be that our policymakers may take up the study to manage water efficiently. Since the practices were selected based on geographic and hydrological characteristics, they can be introduced in other Indian states with similar characteristics. Keywords • IoT • Community-based • Water management • Strategies • Sustainability • Planning • COVID-19 • India • Adhikari B, Ta...

The Ahar-pyne system is a traditional irrigation structure that is common in the southern districts of Bihar. These traditional structures are damaged by climatic stresses such as floods and droughts and need repair and maintenance. As part of its shelf of works, Nagwa Gram Panchayat in Fatehpur block of Gaya district selected renovation of ahar-pyne in Aiwan village as part of water harvesting structures under MGNREGA. ISSUES The ahar structure played an important role in protecting Aiwan village from floods and needed repairs not just for flood protection but also to provide water for irrigation. The bund of the ahar-pyne had been damaged in the previous year and the village was flooded. As the land slope next to ahar is very gentle (terrain slope rate is roughly 1m per kilometre), the high-intensity flood waters during peak monsoon season caused the damage – the ahar retains water for less time due to its height and low storage capacity. IMPLEMENTATION The ICRG Team and the MGNREGA Technical Assistant conducted a field survey and recommended the following design changes: • To control the seepage from the ahar, it was recommended that a core trench be dug near the possible seepage area of the ahar embankment and fill it with compacted black soil. This will prevent possible soil erosion and water loss from seepage through subsurface cracks or joints. • The adoption of the ‘ridge to valley’ approach to treat pynes and drainage channels. This will allow maximum water accumu...

Since the early times Indians have used various ingenious methods to conserve and use water for various purposes like domestic, irrigation, hydropower, navigation and recreation. This chapter traces the history and evolution of water management since the earliest times in India and briefly covers the history from the Indus Valley (Harappa) Civilisation till recent times. Evolution of water conservation systems under the rule of Chola’s, Mughal’s, and other empires are also discussed. Steps taken for water resources development (WRD) in the colonial era (under British Raj) and how the advancements were made till the present times are briefly mentioned along with future challenges for water management in India. • Batuta, I. (1958). The Travels of Ibn Battuta, AD 1325-1354 (Vol. 141). Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. • Cullet, P. and Gupta, J. (2009). Evolution of Water Law and Policy in India 10.2 The Pre-colonial History of Water Law. • CWMI (2019). Composite Water Management Index. Ministry of Jal Shakti and Ministry of Rural Development, New Delhi. • Irrigation Commission (1972). Report of the irrigation commission, 1972. Vol. I. Ministry of Irrigation and Power, New Delhi. • Jal Shakti (2020). Jal Shakti - Jan Shakti, Making Water Everyone’s Business. Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. May, 2020. • James, J. and James, J.E. (2013). Culture and Heritage for Environment Management. Proceedings for Kerala Environment Congress 2013 . KSCSTE, Kerala. • Karpagaselvi, S. (201...

Gopi Verma was in a positive frame of mind. His mission, to revive an ancient community irrigation system—the aahar-pyne system, in the southern part of Bihar state, situated in eastern India—was on the verge of coming to fruition. (See Glossary for meanings of many of the Indian terms used in this case.) He had accomplished the daunting, almost impossible task of getting communities from 10 revenue villages, with diverse interests and concerns, to negotiate towards collectively reviving the Bagulwa Dasain Pyne (an aahar-pyne system). A community-based organization (CBO), with representatives from each of the 10 revenue villages, was formed, and a framework for governing and managing the common-pool irrigation resource had been collectively developed, with Gopi acting as facilitator. The actual renovation work had just commenced. Then, in the middle of the night, Gopi received a call from the president of the CBO, who frantically told him, "Gopi babu, they have set all the machinery engaged in the renovation work on the fire. They have fired many bullets and were in search of me. I have somehow managed to escape and am currently hiding in the shrubbery of the riverside." Gopi telephoned the police and district administration, who assured him that they would look into the matter. In a short while, he got a call from the local police administration. The police officer told him, "it is quite late in the night and it would be dangerous to visit the spot now. The damage has alr...

The annual journal of the Indian History Congress, entitled The Proceedings of the Indian History Congress carries research papers selected out of papers presented at its annual sessions on all aspects and periods of Indian History from pre-history to contemporary times as well as the history of countries other than India. The addresses of the General President and the Presidents of the six sections generally take up broad issues of interpretation and historical debate. The journal has constantly taken the view that ‘India’ for its purpose is the country with its Pre-Partition boundaries, while treats Contemporary History as the history of Indian Union after 1947. The papers included in the Proceedings can be held to represent fairly well the current trends of historical research in India. Thus there has been a growth of papers on women’s history, environmental and regional history. This journal has appeared annually since 1935 except for five different years when the annual sessions of the Indian History Congress could not be held. The Indian History Congress is the major national organisation of Indian historians, and has occupied this position since its founding session under the name of Modern History Congress, held at Poona in 1935. In his address the organisation's first President, Professor Shafaat Ahmad Khan called upon Indian historians to study all aspects of history, rather than only political history and to emphasize the integrative factors in the past. Its nam...

Since the early times Indians have used various ingenious methods to conserve and use water for various purposes like domestic, irrigation, hydropower, navigation and recreation. This chapter traces the history and evolution of water management since the earliest times in India and briefly covers the history from the Indus Valley (Harappa) Civilisation till recent times. Evolution of water conservation systems under the rule of Chola’s, Mughal’s, and other empires are also discussed. Steps taken for water resources development (WRD) in the colonial era (under British Raj) and how the advancements were made till the present times are briefly mentioned along with future challenges for water management in India. • Batuta, I. (1958). The Travels of Ibn Battuta, AD 1325-1354 (Vol. 141). Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. • Cullet, P. and Gupta, J. (2009). Evolution of Water Law and Policy in India 10.2 The Pre-colonial History of Water Law. • CWMI (2019). Composite Water Management Index. Ministry of Jal Shakti and Ministry of Rural Development, New Delhi. • Irrigation Commission (1972). Report of the irrigation commission, 1972. Vol. I. Ministry of Irrigation and Power, New Delhi. • Jal Shakti (2020). Jal Shakti - Jan Shakti, Making Water Everyone’s Business. Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. May, 2020. • James, J. and James, J.E. (2013). Culture and Heritage for Environment Management. Proceedings for Kerala Environment Congress 2013 . KSCSTE, Kerala. • Karpagaselvi, S. (201...

Ahar pynes are traditional floodwater harvesting systems indigenous to South Bihar [1], and have been the most important source of irrigation in this region. Ahars are reservoirs with embankments on three sides and are built at the end of drainage lines such as rivulets or artificial works like pynes. Pynes are diversion channels led off from the river for irrigation purposes and for impounding water in the ahars. It is mostly to the credit of these that paddy cultivation has been possible in this otherwise relatively low rainfall area, when compared to North Bihar. The system attained its highest development in the district of Gaya [2]. This article provides an account of the ahar-pyne systems of South Bihar and the need to build organizational and institutional capacities of civil society and government agencies to undertake ahar pyne renovation and management. Ahar Pyne system in Gaya, South Bihar Image courtesy: Hindi Water Portal Agricultural development in South Bihar Agriculture in Bihar has remained stagnant in spite of the rich soil, abundance of easily accessible water and a rich peasant tradition. The stagnation has been ascribed to several factors including the state’s colonial legacy, ecological conditions, demographic pressure and most importantly, the land tenure system and the agrarian structure it supports. These factors are believed to have impeded the transition of Bihar’s agriculture from a semi-feudal to capitalist production system, an essential condi...

The Ahar-pyne system is a traditional irrigation structure that is common in the southern districts of Bihar. These traditional structures are damaged by climatic stresses such as floods and droughts and need repair and maintenance. As part of its shelf of works, Nagwa Gram Panchayat in Fatehpur block of Gaya district selected renovation of ahar-pyne in Aiwan village as part of water harvesting structures under MGNREGA. ISSUES The ahar structure played an important role in protecting Aiwan village from floods and needed repairs not just for flood protection but also to provide water for irrigation. The bund of the ahar-pyne had been damaged in the previous year and the village was flooded. As the land slope next to ahar is very gentle (terrain slope rate is roughly 1m per kilometre), the high-intensity flood waters during peak monsoon season caused the damage – the ahar retains water for less time due to its height and low storage capacity. IMPLEMENTATION The ICRG Team and the MGNREGA Technical Assistant conducted a field survey and recommended the following design changes: • To control the seepage from the ahar, it was recommended that a core trench be dug near the possible seepage area of the ahar embankment and fill it with compacted black soil. This will prevent possible soil erosion and water loss from seepage through subsurface cracks or joints. • The adoption of the ‘ridge to valley’ approach to treat pynes and drainage channels. This will allow maximum water accumu...

Cities around the world and in India are water-stressed and are only able to make stop-gap arrangement to fight the crisis. The problems related to water shortage though they are relatively new but will stay for a considerable period. Community-based water management practices can be the answer to the water crisis problem and need to be revisited. These practices are decades-old and have survived many generations. The issue with such practices is that they are not efficient, are time-consuming and labour intensive contemporarily. Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to solve the problem associated with traditional community-based water management practices. The study discusses the problems associated with the six selected community-based water management practices and the importance of IoT as an assistive technology to solve the issues related to community-based water management practices. Finally, the study proposes strategies to integrate traditional community-based water management practices with modern technology which can be used during and post COVID-19 pandemic. The practical implication of the study can be that our policymakers may take up the study to manage water efficiently. Since the practices were selected based on geographic and hydrological characteristics, they can be introduced in other Indian states with similar characteristics. Keywords • IoT • Community-based • Water management • Strategies • Sustainability • Planning • COVID-19 • India • Adhikari B, Ta...