1.Design and Development of Rubber Dam for Watershed

Technology description: A rubber dam or flexible check dam is an inflatable structure build across a stream used for water conservation, flood control and regulating flow of water in the stream. When it is inflated, it serves as a check dam/weir, and when it is deflated, it functions as a flood mitigation device and sediment flushing. The head or height of rubber dam is variable. This variable head also regulates the depth of flow in the irrigation diversion channel present in the upstream side of the check dam or in irrigation canals and distributaries.

Specific benefits: The main advantages of the rubber dam are its ability for better water conservation, soil erosion control, and flood control. Additional water storage in the range of 4500 to 10000 m3 is available for irrigation. It also acts as a dam/ reservoir for storing water during scanty rainfall period (dry spells) so that supplemental irrigation can be provided to the crops for enhancing production and productivity. This technology has a potential to benefit farmers in rainfed agro-ecosystems as well as in coastal areas susceptible for sea water ingress, natural calamities like cyclone, flood, high tide, tsunami etc.

Impact: Adoption of technology can increase the crop production, crop diversification and cropping intensity and in turn enhance the rural income. The productivity of rice can be increased up to 62% due to assured irrigation during Kharif season, and the productivity of green gram and vegetable crops up to 25% and 40% during rabi and summer seasons respectively.

Unit cost: ` 800000/- per one unit of 5 m width and 1.5 m height for 40 ha land.