Operation and Maintenance

of Irrigation systems
Eng.S.Kokularamanan

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Operations and water management
• Water management is the integrated process of
storage,diversion,conveyance,regulation, measurement,distribution
and application of the rational amount of water at the proper time
and removal of excess water from the farms to promote increased
production in conjunction with improved culturalpractices.

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 Methods of Water delivery
Method Pro Con
Demand system Flexible If requirement exceeds
capacity
Rotation system Can achieve high Farmer had to be
efficiency efficient
Continuous Flow system Farmer has lot of Inefficient and causes
flexibility drainage problem
AWD Very efficient Farmers to be educated

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Continuity of Project Management
and Project cycle management

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Canals Layouts and Blocking out plans
• Main canal Gradient should be 0.00035
Drawing should be at scale of 1:5000
• Branch canal Could be represented in schematic diagram also
Maximum area covered by field canal is 30Acs
• Distributary canal
• Field canal

• Block out plan

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Allai scheme Map Morawewa Scheme map

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Irrigation Scheme
• Major Schemes 111
(Above 1000acs)
• Medium 239
(Between 200 acs to 1000acs)

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Importance of maintenance
• To reduce unwanted expenditure
• To protect life and property
• Loss to the cultivation
• Loss/waste of water
• Interruption to transport

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Types of maintenance
• Regular -
• Preventive

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Recommended Practice in Maintenance
Weeding canal bunds Twice a year
Earth work on canals Once a year
Desilting canals Once a year
Gravelling roads Once a year
Removing water plants Once a year
Lubricating structure gates 4 times year
Painting gates with anticorrosive Once a year
Removal of ant hills Once a year
Repairing retaining walls Once in 2 years
Repairs to canal lining Once a year
Repairs to rubble pitching Once a year 10
Recommended Practice in Maintenance (Cont.)
Repairs to dry rubble pitching Once a year
Repairs to structures On priority order
Bridges Once in 5 years
Regulators Once in 5 years
Turn out structures Once in 2 years
Channel profiles Once in 5 years
Bathing steps Once in 5 years
Culverts Once in 5 years
Check Structures Once in 5 years
Syphons Once in 5 years
Drainage crossings Once in 5 years 11
 Maintenance of the reservoir
• Trimming of bund slopes, without uprooting turf,
• Removal of unwanted vegetation and disposing,
• Filling of potholes, scours, depressions and minor slips in the bund with
suitable borrowed earth,
• Removal of ant hills and trees,
• Turfing the exposed sections of the bund slopes,
• Clearing the spill tail canals of all vegetation and other obstructions to provide
perfect get-away conditions,
• Filling scours around structures with suitable material,
• Greasing of lifting mechanism, testing and attending repairs if there are any,
painting parts of the gates that are subjected to corrosion, and
• Painting the planking arrangements with wood preservatives.
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Benefits of proper canal maintenance

• Get the adequate amount of water from the system to the ultimate
end user at correct time
• Reduce the wastage of water
• Make easy of control of water distribution
• Existence of the canal system is confirmed as designed.
• Efficiency of the canal system is increasing
• Finally by getting required crop water to the field

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Who were responsible for maintenance of
following?
• Main canal - Irrigation Dept.

• Branch canal - Irrigation Dept.

• Distributary canal - Farmer Organisation /Irrigation Dept.

• Field canals - Farmer

Organization

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Maintenance of main canal
• The canal be desilted so as to restore the designed bed and the excavated
material be deposited in such a way that it does not get washed back into
the canal,
• Trim the side slopes of the canal and the bund,
• Clear the canal bund, berm and road way of vegetation, ant hills, trees and
other matters which would cause deterioration of the canal bund,
• Back fill and consolidate all minor settlement with suitable materials,
• Ensure all the structures are free with vegetable growth cracks, etc,
• Lubricate the gate spindles,
• Check all plank arrangement,
• Remove rust and apply anti corrosive.
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Main activities in canal maintenance
• Reduce seepage loss
• Repair leak
• Avoid over topping
• Preventing Erosion

• Example O&M manual Weheragala Scheme

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Surveying Procedures related to Irrigation Dept.
• Full Investigation Survey
• A Full investigation survey is carry out with counter survey, longitudinal
section, site surveys, cross sectional bund & etc.
• Clarity, Neatness and accuracy are insisted on the surveys.
• The plans produced should be of a very high quality.
• During the field investigation, the surveying officer is expected to pay special
attention to the establishment of confidence and keenness in the villagers to
keep an open ear for their suggestions and opinions.
• As far as possible to enlist their active assistance with manual work of the
survey.

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Specification for investigation of village tanks
The survey shall consist of five parts those are
• Tank bund survey
• Tank bed survey
• Breach site survey
• Spill site survey
• Irrigable area survey

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• Tank Bed survey
• To determine the capacity at different elevation.
• To determine the capacity
• Tank Bund Survey
• To determine the alignment of the bund.
• To determine the quantity of earth work necessary for the improvements to bund.
• Breach Site Survey
• To determine the alignment of the bund sat breach site.
• To determine the quantity of earth work involved in breach filling.
• The quantity of silt & other unsuitable materials that should be removed at the
breach site.
• Spill site survey
• To determine the most suitable alignment and the type of spill.
• Irrigable area survey
• To determine the irrigable area and the channel traces.

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Tank Bund Survey
• The axis of the bund shall be the centerline of the existing bund extended on either side till the ground level is about 5
ft (1.5 m) above the average top level of the existing bund.
• The bund axis with the left bank end zero point shall be marked by sawn wooden pegs at 100 ft (25m) intervals and at
points of change of direction , pegs shall project 3 inches (75mm) above the surrounding ground level and shall show
the chainage (station) number.
• A transverse survey of the bund axis shall be made. All topographical and civic features such as rock out crops, stream,
roads, house ,private lands & etc falling within 80ft ,(25 m) on upstream side & 70ft (20 m) on downstream side of
the shall be surveyed by offset lines and shown on the plans.
• Spot heights along the axis and along the upstream and downstream toes shall be taken 100 ft.(25m) (at each
chainage points / or stations) or closer to indicate gullies , stream crossing , breaches or other topographical features.
• Spot levels along cross lines at each chainage (station) point shall be taken at 10ft (2.5m) intervals or closer or bring
out the true profile of the bund. These levels shall extend to 10 ft. (25 m) on either side of the toe. Additional cross
sections shall be taken to show marked change in existing bund profile.
• A flat plan and longitudinal section of the axis and cross section of the bund shall be plotted to the following scales
• Flat plan 200ft to an inch (1 :2,000 for metric)
• LS 200ft to an inch (1 : 2,000 for metric) horizontal & 10ft to an inch (1: 100 for metric) vertical
• CS 10ft to an inch (1:100 for metric)
• The flat plan and longitudinal sections shall be drawn on the same sheet. The plan shall occupy the upper portion of
the sheet and the and longitudinal sections the lower portion.
• The longitudinal sections of the axis shall also show in dotted lines the upstream and downstream toe.

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Tank Bed Survey
• Using the bund axis as the base line, cross lines shall be taken into the bank bed at 4 survey chain (50m) interval.
• Spot levels along these, cross lines shall be taken at 100ft (25 m) intervals or closer to enable the contours to be
correctly drawn. Marked variation in the topography that will not be clearly indicated by the spot levels along the
cross lines shall be surveyed by offset lines and leveled.
• The Spot levels along the cross lines shall be continued till the ground level is about 5ft (1.5 m) above the average top
level of the existing bund.
• All civic features such as roads, houses, private lands, cultivation, & etc. coming within the area shall be surveyed and
shown on the plans. Rock outcrops and mainstream shall be surveyed, leveled and shown on plans.
• The plan shall be plotted to a scale of 4 survey chains to an inch (1:2000) and shall shown the bund axis , the spot
heights, the topographic and civic features. From the spot heights contour lines at 1 ft (0.30m) vertical intervals shall
be drawn.
Breach site survey
• Using the bund axis as the base line, cross lines shall be taken at 40ft ,(10m) interval starting from
the L.B. end of the breach and ending at the R.B. end. The cross lines shall extend to 80ft (25m)
on either side on the base line.
• Spot levels shall be taken along the cross lines at 20ft <5m> intervals or closer to shown marked
undulation.
• All topographical features such as rock outcrops, streams & etc., falling within the area shall be
surveyed, leveled and shown on plan.
• The plans shall be drawn to a scale of 1:500 and shall show the bund axis with the chainage
(station), the spot levels and the topographical features.
• Each breach site shall have a separate plan. 21
Spill site survey
• The spill axis shown on the plan shall be established on the ground at the
site.
• The two extremities shall be marked by sawn wooden pegs projecting 3
inches (75 mm) above the surrounding ground level. This axis shall be tied
to the buns axis.
• With this axis as the base line, the area shown on the plan shall be covered
by cross lines at 40 ft. 10m intervals and spot height at 20 ft. (5m) intervals
or closer to show marked undulations shall be taken.
• All rock outcrops, cavities, streams, private lands & etc. together with their
boundaries and levels shall be surveyed in.
• The plan shall be drawn to a scale of 40 ft to an inch (1:500). All spot levels
and features surveyed in the bearing of spill axis to bind axis the position
and value of the benchmark etc. shall be shown on the plan.

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 Irrigation canals
• Longitudinal section along the centerline of canal trace
• At 100 ft. (25 m) intervals along traces and at changes of slope within interval for
the spot heights in longitudinal section
• At 200 ft (50 m) for main & branch channels and 100 ft. (25 m) for distributary,
sub distributary, field & sub field channels, intervals and along bisectors at angle
points including at points of change of slope in longitudinal section.
• 300 ft. (100 m) for main & branch canal, 150 ft (50m) for distribury& sub
distributary and 50 ft. (15 m) for field & sub field channel on each side of
centerline for the length of cross section.
• The cross section spot heights will be 50 ft. (12.5 m) interval for main & branch
canal, 25 ft (10 m) and at changes of slope within interval for distribury& sub
distributarychannels and 10 ft. (2.5 m) intervals and at changes of slope within
interval for field & sub field channels.
• Scale of the drawing will be 4- survey chain (264 ft) to an inch (1:2000).

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 Rehabilitation canals
• The longitudinal section will be along the mean centerline of canal, drainage canal or stream
with zero station at downstream and of turnout structure for canals and centerline of
confluence with outlet drainage for drainage canals and streams respectively.
• The spot height of the longitudinal; section will be 100 ft (25m) for irrigation canals and 200 ft.
(50 m) for drainage canals & streams respectively along the centerline.
• The interval of the cross section will be at representative locations to provide not less than 15
cross section per mile (10 cross section per km) to be considered as typical cross section
defining existing conditions along entire length of the canal or drainage canal. The above
number of cross section may be reduced to 10 & 5 respectively for streams.
• The length of the cross section will be 50 ft. (15 m) beyond the upstream and downstream toes
of the bund or road of main & branch canals. The above length will be 30 ft (10m) for
distributary canals and 15 ft (5 m) for field canals & drainage canals. The cross section will be
normal to the centerline and along dissectors at angle points.
• The spot heights of the cross section will be 10 ft (2.5 m) intervals but to include top edges and
toes of bunds or roads of canals; top & bottom edges of banks of drainage canals and streams
and at intermediate points along bund or road bank slopes if there is marked change in direction
of slope.
• The scale of the drawing will be 4 chains to an inch (1:5000) horizontal for profiles of main
branch, drainage canals and streams, 2 chains to an inch (1: 2000) horizontal for profiles of
distributaries & field canals.
• The scale of the drawing will be 10 ft to an inch (1:100) vertical for sections and vertical and
horizontal for cross sections. 24
Standing Orders
• North east monsoon –Department Circular 42 of 1978

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Profit factor and Procurement Committees

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Documents to be checked by IEE on regular
basis(Related to Works and Contract)
• Department circular No: 2002/01
i. Register of sanctioned estimates
ii. Work files
iii. Progress reports
iv. Measurement books
v. Register of security and tender deposits
vi. Register of contracts
vii. Register of contract payments
viii. Register of retention
ix. Register of defaulting contractors
x. Registration of contractors register
xi. Tender minutes book
xii. Register of allocation

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Reference Books
By the Irrigation Department
• Irrigation Department manual
• Technical Guidelines for Irrigation works(1988)
• Design of Irrigation Head works for small catchment(1984)
• Operations Manual of the engineering Materials Laboratory(1982)
• Data for costing(1980)

Other publishers
USGS Publication
1. Small Dams
2. Small canal systems
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