Historical Factors

The decline of tank irrigation in the decades following the 1950s was caused by the continuation of a policy which had its origins in the very early phase of the British rule in India. It was a policy based on the need to propagate an impression that smaller irrigation works were uneconomical and an unnecessary burden on revenue officials. This impression arose out of a long neglect of the ancient, locally maintained tank irrigation systems of South India because of changes in the tenurial system towards raiyatwari or zamindari.

Describing irrigation development in South India in the 1930s, T. Ranga Rao an expert, wrote:

"In the early days of British rule, it was expected that all irrigation works would be maintained by village communities concerned without any cost to the state. But settlement of the revenue system of the presidency, assesing as it did, through the several stages of farming system, of the Permanent Settlement of the village lease or renting system, and, of the raiyatwari system, has shaken the village community and with it the communal labour."

The tradition of tanks as the largest source of irrigation continued in Andhra Pradesh until the mid-1960s. There has since been an overall decline in the area irrigated by tanks in spite of a marginal increase in the number of tanks. The situation in drought-prone areas is more alarming. In some of the districts, there has been a reduction in the number of tanks as well as the area irrigated by them.

There was a very strong opposition from the District Collectors to the idea of abandoning the smaller tanks.