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25 November 2021 Adaptation Strategies to Address Challenges of Traditional Agricultural Water Management in the Upper Indus Basin
Nisha Wagle, Madhav P. Dhakal, Arun B. Shrestha
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Abstract

Agriculture in the Upper Indus Basin largely depends on the cryosphere, and cultivation is possible only through irrigation. The agriculture system, however, faces challenges in terms of climate, extreme events, water scarcity, and other socioeconomic conditions. Hence, a scoping review was conducted to identify the irrigation systems and coping mechanism in the 4 valleys of the basin. Centuries-old irrigation canals, water distribution, management systems, and coping mechanisms are in place. Adaptation strategies are managed by communities, and some are established and supported by government and development organizations. Successes, in terms of increased income, crop yields, and cost, are widely reported; however, evidence of their efficiency and sustainability is scarce.

© 2021 Wagle et al. This open access article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Please credit the authors and the full source.
Nisha Wagle, Madhav P. Dhakal, and Arun B. Shrestha "Adaptation Strategies to Address Challenges of Traditional Agricultural Water Management in the Upper Indus Basin," Mountain Research and Development 41(3), R24-R31, (25 November 2021). https://doi.org/10.1659/MRD-JOURNAL-D-20-00059.1
Received: 15 October 2020; Accepted: 23 September 2021; Published: 25 November 2021
KEYWORDS
adaptation strategy
agriculture
climate change
high mountains
irrigation practices
water scarcity
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