Question

Define irrigation.
A. Irrigation is watering of land to make it ready for harvesting.
B. Irrigation is digging up land to make it ready for agriculture.
C. Irrigation is watering of land to make it ready for agriculture.
D. Irrigation is providing water for home needs.

Answer 1

Agriculture is done on the land that has nutrient rich soil and good water content present in it. If the nutrients or water are low in the soil then they are provided artificially by different sources and methods.

Complete answer:
Irrigation has been used since the 6th millennium BCE, its first use has been registered in Khuzistan. Irrigation is the application of water to the soil and plants at regular intervals so that the plants can grow well. It is used to produce healthy crops and plants, replenish degraded soil, improving a landscape destroyed due to certain reasons, it suppresses growth of weeds and harm caused by frost. Though most of the areas where agriculture is practised are rain fed and they don’t need irrigation by artificial methods as they already receive plenty of water through rainfall. In dry and arid areas which receive less rain irrigation is of great help.
Different type of irrigation are known like –
Surface irrigation: it is the oldest form of irrigation in which water moves across the surface of an agricultural land and that is how it wets the complete land and penetrates the soil following the slope and gravity.
Micro-irrigation: in this method water is distributed through a network of pipes at a low pressure. A predetermined pattern of pipes is made in such water in appropriate amounts is provided to the plants just near their roots. It involves drip irrigation, micro-spray sprinkler and micro bubble irrigation.
Sprinkler irrigation: It is also known as overhead irrigation in which water is distributed by overheads to one or more central locations. To these high pressure overhead sprinklers, guns and sprays are attached.
Subirrigation: In this method of irrigation the water in the water table is raised with the help of irrigation up to a level that the soil achieves moisture below the root level of the plants.
Irrigation is not done at the time of harvesting but it is done at time of sowing seeds and till the plants grow well much before harvesting is done. It does not involve any kind of digging or household supply of water.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Additional information:
-Irrigation is the major cause of freshwater decline as it is the reason for its withdrawal in bulk all over the world.
-In India more than one fifth part of the nation’s electricity is used in pumping water for the purpose of irrigation.
-90% of India’s freshwater is used for irrigation.
-Irrigation needs a large capital investment but it should be taken care of that the investment should not be more than what can’t be incurred from the crops for which irrigation is used.
-Sometimes irrigation leads to an increase in water level that also increases the level or saline water or the water that is loaded with toxic pollutants which are harmful for the plants and the landscape.

Note: Sprinkler irrigation is like artificial rainfall as water in this type of irrigation moves through pipes and is sprinkled on plants with the help of sprinklers present at different locations in the field. It also includes central pivot irrigation which is like a sprinkler on wheels.