Lift irrigation
Also called: Lift canal · Topic: Regional Planning and Sustainable Development in India · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 6 "Planning and Sustainable Development in Indian Context"
Meaning
Lift irrigation means pumping water up so that it can flow against the slope of the land and reach higher fields. Ordinary canal water can only run downhill, so higher land would get none without pumps. Under the Indira Gandhi Canal plan, about 70% of the command area was to get water by flow. The rest, about 30%, was to get it by lift. Pumps need power and money, so lift irrigation costs more than flow irrigation.
Example
On the Indira Gandhi Canal in western Rajasthan, all lift canals start on the left bank of the main canal. Here the land rises away from the canal.
Don't confuse with
- Flow irrigation: water moves downhill by gravity alone, with no pumping. On the Indira Gandhi Canal, all right-bank channels are flow channels. A statement saying "lift canals are on the right bank" is false.