Impact of Groundwater Depletion on Irrigation Cost of Paddy and Maize Cropping System in the Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh, India

The study was conducted to estimate the cost of groundwater irrigation and the impact of groundwater over-exploitation on the irrigation cost of paddy and maize in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. Based on the stage of groundwater extraction, the Central Groundwater Board divided the study area into safe and exploited areas. Primary data was collected from both these safe and exploited areas. The study found that the annual irrigation cost of groundwater in over-exploited areas for both paddy (₹4033.38/acre) and maize (₹3570.26/acre) were observed to be higher as against paddy (₹2697.01/acre) and maize (₹ 2524.76/acre) in safe areas. The added cost of groundwater irrigation in over-exploited areas for paddy (₹988.08/acre) and maize (₹838.34/acre) were preponderantly greater than paddy (₹216.60/acre) and maize (₹187.82/acre) in safe areas. This revealed that groundwater over-exploitation had a more significant impact on over-exploited regions. Marginal and small farmers are the primary victims of groundwater over-exploitation in terms of cost and groundwater resources. Free/subsidized electricity for irrigation and water-intensive crops, paddy and maize, are one of the reasons for depleting groundwater in the study area. There is a solid requirement for controlling groundwater over-exploitation in the study area.