| Sumario: | According to Kansakar (2006), only 18% of Tarai farms used GW irrigation. However, this number rose to 30% in the 2011 Agriculture Census and 41.7% in the most recent Agriculture Census. Enormous energy is needed to pump the GW to the surface.
According to WECS, water pumping in the Tarai region accounts for the highest energy consumption in the country's agricultural sector, with diesel accounting for an 84% share (WECS, 2023). Lack of energy access in the farms and the requirement for upfront costs to construct the pumping infrastructures are the leading causes of low coverage GW-based irrigation.
To compare various energy technologies, such as diesel pumps (DP), electric pumps (EP), and solar irrigation pumps (SIP), for groundwater abstraction for irrigation in Nepal, this paper combines a review of the literature with on-the-ground experience. The literature review focused on the Terai region, abstracting GW from shallow and deep aquifers through individual and community projects.
For the widespread adoption of different technologies for GW irrigation, we consider and compare them against key parameters such as costs (both operational and upfront), performance, usability, supply chain, and impact on GW resources. The EP receives a subsidized electricity tariff for agricultural use, while SIPs receive upfront capital subsidies. In addition to the detrimental environmental effects, diesel pumps are costly to operate, making them impractical for water-intensive crops. Although EPs have relatively low running costs and reasonable upfront costs, farms must be within the grid's coverage area to access EPs. Also, in areas with access to the grid, the quality of the grid and frequent power outages in rural areas are major concerns. Most smallholder farmers cannot afford the high upfront cost of SIP, and the GoN's subsidy budget is insufficient to meet the high demand.
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