Addressing the Plenary Session of 9th Berlin Agriculture Ministers' Conference at Berlin, he said distribution of water resources across the vast expanse of the country is uneven, therefore, as incomes rise the need for water also rises.
He informed the gathering that most of the irrigation projects are operating at levels below the achievable efficiency of more than 50 per cent. There is enormous scope to improve the productivity and efficiency of irrigation systems which can be achieved both by technological as well as social interventions.
Therefore, there is need to adopt an integrated approach with emphasis on greater conservation and enhanced water use efficiency, the minister added.
Singh said that water is certainly the most critical resource for agriculture, gaining primacy even over other important inputs like soil.
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"The prevailing farming situation in India calls for an integrated effort to address the emerging issues/problems," he said.
However, these integrated farming systems are required to be location specific and designed in such a manner that they lead to substantial improvement in energy efficiencies at the farm and help in maximum exploitation of synergies through adoption of close cycles.
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