Solar lift irrigation to help marginalized farmers in Nepal

A solar lift irrigation system could improve the prospects of an impoverished mountain community in Nepal by providing access to water for year-round farming.

Originating in the Himalaya, the Indrawati River flows east of the Kathmandu Valley. Its banks, although prone to flooding, provide fertile farming land for those fortunate enough to live by it.

For the marginalized Majhi community of Bisdeutar village (population 284), Sindhupalchowk district, life couldn’t be more different. Up on the steep hillsides above the river, the seasonal monsoon rains (June to September) provide a limited, and increasingly unreliable source of water for their crops and livestock.

In 2015, earthquakes killed 12 villagers and destroyed the entire settlement, which had to be rebuilt house by house.

Women farmers of Bisdeutar shoulder huge responsibilities.

They tend to their cattle and look after the crops they grow during the monsoon. With many of the men migrating abroad for work, the women also have to look after the older and younger members of the community.

With the breakdown of water supplied to Bisdeutar from a forest spring, the community’s demand for reliable drinking water and irrigation was taken up by Indrawati Rural Municipality.

Under the CGIAR Initiatives on NEXUS Gains and Mixed Farming Systems, IWMI Nepal, in partnership with local government, is now facilitating the installation of a solar lift irrigation system to provide water for irrigation and household purposes. A feasibility study conducted in July 2024 showed that the project would deliver 90,000 liters of water a day 100 meters up from the river.

Bisdeutar villagers have high hopes for their prospects once the project is implemented. Irrigation would make year-round cultivation, and even commercial farming, possible. Outside of irrigation hours, the water pumped could be used for livestock and household purposes. Operation and management would be undertaken by the community.

Sumitra Majhi, Bisdeutar farmer, Indrawati Rural Municipality, Sindhupalchowk, Nepal

“Those who migrated for their children’s education may return if the community advances.”

Without such initiatives to improve farming conditions in Bisdeutar, the youth of the village will have no choice but to rely on the traditional Majhi subsistence occupation of fishing the Indrawati, or working as daily wage laborers and migrant workers. Due to complete in December 2024, the project has the potential to transform not just the economics, but the very demographics of Bisdeutar. According to a local woman, “Those who migrated for their children’s education may return if the community advances.”

Story by:

Aashika Adhikari, Research Intern, IWMI Nepal

Shisher Shrestha, National Researcher – Renewable Energy Water & Climate Change, IWMI Nepal

Photos and video by:

Surendra Phuyal, Communications Consultant, IWMI Nepal

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