QUESTION 4
GS3
10 marks
How and to what extent would micro-irrigation help in solving India’s water crisis?
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Explain how drip and sprinkler irrigation save water and judge how far they can solve India's water crisis.
How + To what extentAnswer exactly what the question asks.
Demand-wise check
- 1How: water-use efficiency 70–90% vs 30–40% for flood irrigation; fertigation; less groundwater pumping≈30 words
- 2Extent: agriculture uses about 80% of freshwater, so savings matter; but coverage is small≈30 words
- 3Limits: high cost, small holdings, power-free pumping can still drive over-extraction (rebound), crop choice (paddy, sugarcane)≈30 words
- 4Complements: crop diversification, pricing, recharge, PMKSY 'Per Drop More Crop'≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
ContextMechanismExtent with dataLimitsComplementary measuresConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Only explaining 'how' without 'to what extent'
- Ignoring the rebound effect
Draw this
- Bar: water efficiency of flood vs sprinkler vs drip
Value addition
- DataAbout 14 million hectares were under micro-irrigation by 2023, against an estimated potential of about 70 million hectares.Ministry of Agriculture / Task Force on Micro Irrigation
- StudyStudies on drip in Indian states show cases where saved water expanded irrigated area, so total use did not fall (Jevons paradox).IWMI research
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 9 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Aniket Ranjan · AIR 48 · Page 29 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 7 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.