CASE STUDIES

KB Drip -  From poverty towards Prosperity

Muniyappa, a smallholder farmer, hails from Soppalli, Anekal Taluk, a rural district of Bangalore. With only 1.5 acre of land, negligible irrigation resources and a dependent family of 4 adults and one child, Muniyappa had to really struggle to eke out a living for his entire family.

In 2001, he was sanctioned a bore well under the government programme “Ganga Kalyana Yojane” with 100% subsidy on the cost of bore well motor and pump etc. Unfortunately, the bore well yielded less than 500GPH. Muniyappa was so disheartened that he did not use the bore well for 6 months, thinking that the water was not sufficient enough for growing any crops. However, after 6 months, he planted 550 Banana saplings. Initially his mother manually irrigated each plant but with the onset of summers, this proved to be an extremely laborious task. In addition, the water output for irrigation was abysmally low and as a result, Muniyappa lost nearly 100 plants.

It was around this time that he happened to visit a Demo plot being installed by IDEI staff in Suraga Jhakanahalli. On questioning, IDEI staff explained the advantages and costing of KB Drip to him. It did not take Muniyappa long to realize the significant potential of KB drip vis-à-vis its applicability in his particular situation. Not wanting to waste any precious time, he immediately took IDEI staff to his plot. After checking his water and the plot, he was informed about the quantity of pipes required and the cost of the remaining components that he will have to pay the KB dealer. Determined not to be defeated this time, Muniyappa purchased pipes from Anekal the very next day while the remaining materials were supplied on a month's credit by a dealer in Anekal.

The entire cost for the system amounted to Rs. 2070, including PVC pipe (8 lengths), ball valve and fittings, KB drip (8kgs), installation and transportation charges.

Since IDEI had decided to install KB drip system without Microtubes in the beginning, the system installed at this plot did not have micro tubes. Holes punched in the tubes acted as emitters.

Within three months, water pressure reduced considerably, affecting the overall performance of the system. IDEI's recommendation to install poly taps to each lateral line enabled him to operate 10 lines conveniently at extremely reasonable costs.

Muniyappa's yield that season far exceeded his expectations as he was left with a substantial sum after meeting all his overhead costs. This experience boosted his confidence in KB drip enormously. So much so, that he decided to use it for his next crop as well, especially since there no additional cultivation costs involved.

Since then, there has been no looking back for Muniyappa. Having already repaid his loan, he has now constructed a tank which will store water from the bore well with the system connected to the new tank. This system will help him solve the problem of erratic power supply.

Additionally, IDEI has also linked him to traders in his own local market area since Bangalore markets undergo frequent fluctuations in market prices. Besides which, the volume of produce was not so high enough to be profitable for him to transport it to the Bangalore Market.

Today Muniyappa's situation is a far cry from the hopeless crisis situation that defined his life back then. His confidence in himself and most importantly in KB drip propels him to actively promote KB drip in his area, by taking part in all IDEI promotional activities.

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