Hydro Ram Pump at Khyber Village (Muhammad Mudassar Maqsood)

Hydraulic Ram Pump assisted river water lifting and application of stored water through drip irrigation for alley cropping (Pakistan)

Hydram Pump

Description

The water from a contour canal (off-taking from Khunjrab River) was lifted through hydro ram pump to uphill plastic storage and distributed to alley cropping (newly established orchard and vegetable rows) through drip irrigation.

Agriculture, livestock herding and tourism are the major contributors to Gilgit Baltistan economy. The arable land in this region is limited (only 2%) and more than half of which is still barren due to unavailability of irrigation water supplies. The reported dependency of irrigated areas on glacier fed irrigation is more than 90 percent, which now have been fluctuating due to changing climate. This region has been experiencing drastic changes in climate which resulting into lowering of glacier and water related disasters leading towards discontinuity of irrigation water supplies. The electrical power energy options are limited as well as unreliable and in situ replacements are very expensive.

The technological package was applied in arid climate at an elevation ranging from 2340m to 4877 m above sea level. Khyber is located at 36.56o N latitude and 74.79o E longitude. The area receives 150-200 mm annual rain-fall. The population of Khyber village is 1200 residing in 150 houses. Almost 46 percent of population is salaried, 20 percent own business and roughly 19 percent engaged with farming to earn bread and butter for families. The average landholding per household is 3.8 acres out of which 1.25 acre is cultivable waste due to insufficient water supplies and local labor.

To address the above issues, the Indus Basin Initiative (IBI) of International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) through its a consortium of local partners including Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR), Mountain Agriculture Research Centre (MARC) and WWF-Pakistan has been demonstrating the alternative agricultural water management package of practices in lifting water for irrigation using Hydro ram pump. This study also presents the findings based on the experiment/demonstration and testing conducted in the pilot. The pilot site is located in Khyber village of Hunza, Gilgit Baltistan.

The pumping unit comprises a hydro ram pump (which is a zero carbon emission technology and needs no electricty to run, and it is locally customized having 1 inch/25mm out-take pipe) to lift water from a contour channel originating from the Khunjrab River and to carry the water to storage tanks (4000 liters) made up of plastic that has been placed upslope at 175 feet (53,3 m) vertical height from the river. The water from the storage tanks was supplied to alley cropping (apple sapling rows and vegetables rows) through pressure compensating drip irrigation system. The pumping capacity of the pump is 10.2 liters/minute, which is irrigating around 350 apple plants and vegetable rows at 2.5 acre (1ha). The storage tank was kept 45 feet (13,5 m) vertical height from the orchard field. Plan to plant distance and row to row distance of apple was maintained at 15 feet (4,6 m) and 20 (6 m) feet respectively. Drip irrigation system was established for each apple plant, as well as vegetables rows. Pits were constructed for planting apples and later they served also as water harvesting pits /check basins. Gilgit Baltistan chapter of WWF-Pakistan mobilized the local community, while PCRWR and MARC provided technical support to the Khyber Community in establishment of this pilot site. The community youth provided voluntary support during the land preparation, plantation and installation of hydro ram pump as well as drip irrigation system and the uphill storage tanks.

The cost of a complete package including hydro ram pump with accessories, storage tanks, intake and distribution systems, drip irrigation, apple plants and operational expenses for the site was US$ 25, 865 for 2.5 acre (1ha) of land. Women Organization of Khyber village takes care of the maintenance of technological package (fortnightly desilting of drip irrigation and storage tanks and annual repair of hydraulic ram pump). The fruit production has not yet started as it is a newly established farming site. However, seasonal vegetable farming has just started. The produce is small as soil fertility is still building up. Currently, the grown vegetables are being sold or used in the village at household level. However, with higher yield in future, the total income from the farm produce (currenty vegetables only) would be divided equally among the participating 150 households of Khyber Village. A comprehensive cost benefit analysis study has been conducted. It has been envisioned that apple orchard would mature in 4 to 5 years in cold climate of Gojal. By the 6th year, the farm would produce enough to the reach break-event point. The vegetable production has started now and the envisioned annual income is 15,000 PKR (almost 111 USD, if 1 USD=135 PKR).

The community welcomed the new technology and is now planning to outscale it in other areas to bring more land under cultivation. The women organization in the pilot site are positive about the less labourous agricultural activities and foresee to extend the alley cropping under drip irrigation to the rest of 7.5 acres, too. This technology is being dessiminated to different stakeholders including practitioners, policy and decision makers, academia, researchers and local farming communities. For this purpose, exposure field visits and farmers' field days have been arranged by the implementation partners.

Location

Location: Khyber Village, Hunza District, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan

No. of Technology sites analysed: single site

Geo-reference of selected sites
  • 74.79567, 36.56371

Spread of the Technology: applied at specific points/ concentrated on a small area

In a permanently protected area?: Yes

Date of implementation: 2018; less than 10 years ago (recently)

Type of introduction
Hydro Ram Pump installed to lift Khunjrab River water (Muhammad Mudassar Maqsood)
Uphill storage tanks (Muhammad Adil, PCRWR)

Classification of the Technology

Main purpose
  • improve production
  • reduce, prevent, restore land degradation
  • conserve ecosystem
  • protect a watershed/ downstream areas – in combination with other Technologies
  • preserve/ improve biodiversity
  • reduce risk of disasters
  • adapt to climate change/ extremes and its impacts
  • mitigate climate change and its impacts
  • create beneficial economic impact
  • create beneficial social impact
Land use

  • Cropland
    • Annual cropping: vegetables - leafy vegetables (salads, cabbage, spinach, other)
    • Tree and shrub cropping: fruits, other
    Number of growing seasons per year: 1
    Is intercropping practiced? Yes
    Is crop rotation practiced? No

Water supply
  • rainfed
  • mixed rainfed-irrigated
  • full irrigation

Purpose related to land degradation
  • prevent land degradation
  • reduce land degradation
  • restore/ rehabilitate severely degraded land
  • adapt to land degradation
  • not applicable
Degradation addressed
  • soil erosion by water - Wt: loss of topsoil/ surface erosion
  • soil erosion by wind - Et: loss of topsoil
  • water degradation - Ha: aridification
SLM group
  • irrigation management (incl. water supply, drainage)
  • surface water management (spring, river, lakes, sea)
  • energy efficiency technologies
SLM measures
  • agronomic measures - A1: Vegetation/ soil cover
  • vegetative measures - V1: Tree and shrub cover
  • management measures - M1: Change of land use type

Technical drawing

Technical specifications
Hydro Ram Pump: Locally manufactured with pumping capacity of the pump: 10.2 litres/minute. The intake G.I pipe (2 inch/50mm diameter) of 83 feet (25 m) long is connected to water channel. The vertical difference between hydro ram pump and water channel is 28 feet (25m). The out-take HDPE pipe of (1 inch/25mm diameter) of 200 feet (61m) carries water from hydro ram pump to plastic storages. The vertical distance between hydro ram pump and plastic storage tanks is 175 feet (53 m).
The capacity of storage tank: 4000 litres, location of storage tank: 175 feet height (53m, vertical) from the river and 45 feet height (14m, vertical) from the orchard field.
Drip Irrigation: Surface and pressure compensating. The spacing of dripping points: 15 feet (4.6m). Plant to plant and row to row distance of apple 15 feet (4.6m) and 20 feet (6m) respectively.
Author: Muhammad Mudassar Maqsood

Establishment and maintenance: activities, inputs and costs

Calculation of inputs and costs
  • Costs are calculated: per Technology unit (unit: Technological package at pilot site covering 2.5 acre (1 ha))
  • Currency used for cost calculation: USD
  • Exchange rate (to USD): 1 USD = n.a
  • Average wage cost of hired labour per day: US$ 14.5 for skilled person and US$ 7.5 for unskilled person
Most important factors affecting the costs
Since the most of the material (drip irrigation etc) is imported thus cost varies with foreign currency exchange rates. Moreover, the costs are also higher in Gilgit Baltistan comparing to plains of Pakistan owning to expensive transportation.
Establishment activities
  1. Site identification in consultation with the communities (Timing/ frequency: March 2017)
  2. Detailed feasibility surveys of the site (Timing/ frequency: May 2017)
  3. Implementation agreement with the community (Timing/ frequency: January 2018)
  4. Installation of hydro ram pump (Timing/ frequency: June 2018)
  5. Installation of storage (plastic tank) with a line filter attached to it for the operation of the drip system and avoid sediment entry into the tank (Timing/ frequency: June 2018)
  6. Digging of pits for plantation of the apple orchard (Timing/ frequency: June 2018)
  7. Laying of drip irrigation systems (Timing/ frequency: June 2018)
  8. Plantation of tubed apple (Kala Kolu variety) it is bought from the local nursery (Timing/ frequency: June 2018)
  9. Training to selected farmers as caretakers of the technologies for its days to day repair and maintenance (Timing/ frequency: August 2018)
Establishment inputs and costs (per Technological package at pilot site covering 2.5 acre (1 ha))
Specify input Unit Quantity Costs per Unit (USD) Total costs per input (USD) % of costs borne by land users
Labour
Plumbing and technical workers 1 1.0 775.0 775.0 33.0
Installation charges 1 1.0 968.0 968.0
Equipment
Ram Pump & Accessories 1 1.0 8526.0 8526.0
Drip Irrigation 1 1.0 5813.0 5813.0
Off-seasonal vegetable tunnel 1 1.0 4715.0 4715.0
Plant material
Apple tree saplings (lumb sum) 1 1.0 3165.0 3165.0
Fertilizers and biocides
Compost (250 kg) 1 250.0 0.12 30.0 100.0
Other
Feasibility study 1 1.0 1873.0 1873.0
Total costs for establishment of the Technology 25'865.0
Total costs for establishment of the Technology in USD 25'865.0
Maintenance activities
  1. Repair of hydro ram pump (Timing/ frequency: twice an year)
  2. Desiltation of plastic tanks (Timing/ frequency: twice an year)
  3. Desiltation of drip irrigation system (Timing/ frequency: once an year)
  4. Repair & maintenance of drip irrigation system (Timing/ frequency: once in 2 years)
Maintenance inputs and costs (per Technological package at pilot site covering 2.5 acre (1 ha))
Specify input Unit Quantity Costs per Unit (USD) Total costs per input (USD) % of costs borne by land users
Labour
Repair of hydro ram pump 1 2.0 3.75 7.5 100.0
Desiltation of plastic tanks 1 2.0 7.5 15.0 100.0
Desiltation of drip irrigation system 1 1.0 37.0 37.0 100.0
Repair & maintenance of drip irrigation system 1 0.5 37.0 18.5 100.0
Equipment
Repair of hydro ram pump 1 2.0 10.0 20.0 100.0
Repair & maintenance of drip irrigation system 1 0.5 100.0 50.0 100.0
Plant material
Vegetable seeds 1 1.0 15.0 15.0 100.0
Fertilizers and biocides
Diammonium phosphate (DAP) 1 2.0 30.0 60.0 100.0
Compost (250 kg) 1 1.0 22.0 22.0 100.0
Total costs for maintenance of the Technology 245.0
Total costs for maintenance of the Technology in USD 245.0

Natural environment

Average annual rainfall
  • < 250 mm
  • 251-500 mm
  • 501-750 mm
  • 751-1,000 mm
  • 1,001-1,500 mm
  • 1,501-2,000 mm
  • 2,001-3,000 mm
  • 3,001-4,000 mm
  • > 4,000 mm
Agro-climatic zone
  • humid
  • sub-humid
  • semi-arid
  • arid
Specifications on climate
Average annual rainfall in mm: 150.0
it varies from 150 mm to 200 mm
Name of the meteorological station: Passu ghar
Slope
  • flat (0-2%)
  • gentle (3-5%)
  • moderate (6-10%)
  • rolling (11-15%)
  • hilly (16-30%)
  • steep (31-60%)
  • very steep (>60%)
Landforms
  • plateau/plains
  • ridges
  • mountain slopes
  • hill slopes
  • footslopes
  • valley floors
Altitude
  • 0-100 m a.s.l.
  • 101-500 m a.s.l.
  • 501-1,000 m a.s.l.
  • 1,001-1,500 m a.s.l.
  • 1,501-2,000 m a.s.l.
  • 2,001-2,500 m a.s.l.
  • 2,501-3,000 m a.s.l.
  • 3,001-4,000 m a.s.l.
  • > 4,000 m a.s.l.
Technology is applied in
  • convex situations
  • concave situations
  • not relevant
Soil depth
  • very shallow (0-20 cm)
  • shallow (21-50 cm)
  • moderately deep (51-80 cm)
  • deep (81-120 cm)
  • very deep (> 120 cm)
Soil texture (topsoil)
  • coarse/ light (sandy)
  • medium (loamy, silty)
  • fine/ heavy (clay)
Soil texture (> 20 cm below surface)
  • coarse/ light (sandy)
  • medium (loamy, silty)
  • fine/ heavy (clay)
Topsoil organic matter content
  • high (>3%)
  • medium (1-3%)
  • low (<1%)
Groundwater table
  • on surface
  • < 5 m
  • 5-50 m
  • > 50 m
Availability of surface water
  • excess
  • good
  • medium
  • poor/ none
Water quality (untreated)
  • good drinking water
  • poor drinking water (treatment required)
  • for agricultural use only (irrigation)
  • unusable
Water quality refers to: surface water
Is salinity a problem?
  • Yes
  • No

Occurrence of flooding
  • Yes
  • No
Species diversity
  • high
  • medium
  • low
Habitat diversity
  • high
  • medium
  • low

Characteristics of land users applying the Technology

Market orientation
  • subsistence (self-supply)
  • mixed (subsistence/ commercial)
  • commercial/ market
Off-farm income
  • less than 10% of all income
  • 10-50% of all income
  • > 50% of all income
Relative level of wealth
  • very poor
  • poor
  • average
  • rich
  • very rich
Level of mechanization
  • manual work
  • animal traction
  • mechanized/ motorized
Sedentary or nomadic
  • Sedentary
  • Semi-nomadic
  • Nomadic
Individuals or groups
  • individual/ household
  • groups/ community
  • cooperative
  • employee (company, government)
Gender
  • women
  • men
Age
  • children
  • youth
  • middle-aged
  • elderly
Area used per household
  • < 0.5 ha
  • 0.5-1 ha
  • 1-2 ha
  • 2-5 ha
  • 5-15 ha
  • 15-50 ha
  • 50-100 ha
  • 100-500 ha
  • 500-1,000 ha
  • 1,000-10,000 ha
  • > 10,000 ha
Scale
  • small-scale
  • medium-scale
  • large-scale
Land ownership
  • state
  • company
  • communal/ village
  • group
  • individual, not titled
  • individual, titled
Land use rights
  • open access (unorganized)
  • communal (organized)
  • leased
  • individual
Water use rights
  • open access (unorganized)
  • communal (organized)
  • leased
  • individual
Access to services and infrastructure
health

poor
good
education

poor
good
technical assistance

poor
good
employment (e.g. off-farm)

poor
good
markets

poor
good
energy

poor
good
roads and transport

poor
good
drinking water and sanitation

poor
good
financial services

poor
good

Impacts

Socio-economic impacts
Crop production
decreased
increased


The fruit production has not yet started as it is a newly established farming site. However, seasonal vegetable farming has just started. The produce is small as the soil nutrition building is still in process. Currently, the grown vegetables are being sold or used in the village at household level.

production area (new land under cultivation/ use)
decreased
increased

Quantity before SLM: None
Quantity after SLM: 2.5 acres/1ha
Production area increased as uncultivated land has been brought under cultivation.

irrigation water availability
decreased
increased

Quantity before SLM: 0
Quantity after SLM: 14,688 litres per day
Irrigation water availability increased with innovative technological packages to previously barren land

farm income
decreased
increased

workload
increased
decreased


Automized irrigation has decreased labour

Organic vegetables for household consumption
Decreased
Increased

Socio-cultural impacts
land use/ water rights
worsened
improved


Women have been allocated 10 acre arable land (pilot area) for their agricultural area. Out of this 10 acres, ICIMOD with its partners and community organization has brought 2.5 acres under cultivation.

community institutions
weakened
strengthened


Community institution (village development organizations) strengthened due to the approach of farming in a group.

Ecological impacts
soil moisture
decreased
increased


Improved soil moisture as a result of water harvesting pits, mulching and efficient drip irrigation.

soil cover
reduced
improved


Soil cover improved due to vegetation

soil loss
increased
decreased


Reduced soil loss ( from wind and water erosion) due to application of mulch and also due to vegetation cover and above-ground biomass.

Off-site impacts
impact of greenhouse gases
increased
reduced


The intervention has introduced block orchard technology which will help to reduce the impacts of CO2 emmissions from vehicles along the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. Moreover, the water management interventions being used are also climate smart.

Cost-benefit analysis

Benefits compared with establishment costs
Short-term returns
very negative
very positive

Long-term returns
very negative
very positive

Benefits compared with maintenance costs
Short-term returns
very negative
very positive

Long-term returns
very negative
very positive

A comprehensive cost benefit analysis study has been conducted. It has been envisioned that apple orchard would mature in 4 to 5 years in cold climate of Gojal. By the 6th year, the farm would enough produce the reach break-event point. The vegetable production has started now and the envisioned annual income is 15,000 PKR (almost 111 USD,, if 1 USD=135 PKR).

Climate change

Climate-related extremes (disasters)
local snowstorm

not well at all
very well
local windstorm

not well at all
very well
cold wave

not well at all
very well
extreme winter conditions

not well at all
very well
general (river) flood

not well at all
very well
flash flood

not well at all
very well
landslide

not well at all
very well
Other climate-related consequences
extended growing period

not well at all
very well

Adoption and adaptation

Percentage of land users in the area who have adopted the Technology
  • single cases/ experimental
  • 1-10%
  • 11-50%
  • > 50%
Of all those who have adopted the Technology, how many have done so without receiving material incentives?
  • 0-10%
  • 11-50%
  • 51-90%
  • 91-100%
Has the Technology been modified recently to adapt to changing conditions?
  • Yes
  • No
To which changing conditions?
  • climatic change/ extremes
  • changing markets
  • labour availability (e.g. due to migration)

Conclusions and lessons learnt

Strengths: land user's view
  • The hydro ram pump assisted river water lifting integrated with drip irrigation is the first of its kind in the upper Indus basin. The system is simple and anyone once trained can operate it. It will contribute to nearly 40% of the additional income of the Khyber Village
  • The technological package is environmentally friendly and are effective adaptation measures in the context of climate change.
  • Women are involved in agricultural activities and this intervention has provided them relief. Women are now generating seasonal income from growing seasonal and off-seasonal vegetables.
Strengths: compiler’s or other key resource person’s view
  • The first innovative technological package in Gilgit Baltistan that is climate-resilient as compare to traditional practices.
  • Water application through drip irrigation is very efficient as compared to flood irrigation.
  • The technological package can last more than 20 years. Maintenance cost is nominal.
  • As women are predominantly responsible for farming activities, improved water access and application through drip reduces their work-load and frees up time for other activities
Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks: land user's viewhow to overcome
  • Drip irrigation and parts of solar panel may not be available locally. A spare parts should be made available locally for immediate replacement as and when required.
  • The investment cost is high. Explain cost-benefit analysis to aware farmers that the benefit is high in the long run.
Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks: compiler’s or other key resource person’s viewhow to overcome

References

Compiler
  • Muhammad Mudassar Maqsood
Editors
Reviewer
  • Rima Mekdaschi Studer
  • Ursula Gaemperli
Date of documentation: March 30, 2020
Last update: May 8, 2020
Resource persons
Full description in the WOCAT database
Linked SLM data
Documentation was faciliated by
Institution Project
Key references
  • Collaboration Strengthens Climate Resiliency of Upper Gojal Gilgit Mountain Villages in The Upper Indus Basin, CIMOD, 2017: https://www.icimod.org/collaboration-strengthens-climate-resiliency-of-upper-gojal-gilgit-mountain-villages-in-the-upper-indus-basin/
Links to relevant information which is available online
This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareaAlike 4.0 International