Kulhs are traditional irrigation channels found in mountainous regions of Himachal Pradesh. They carry water from glaciers and streams to villages downstream. Parts of Himachal Pradesh developed kulh systems over 400 years ago to divert water from streams into man-made channels to irrigate numerous hillside villages. The kulhs were managed cooperatively by villagers and provided both irrigation and water to replenish springs. However, many kulhs became defunct after being taken over by the Irrigation Department. Kulhs are constructed along natural gradients using rocks, wood, or dug channels to regulate water flow for irrigation, water mills, and equitable distribution to farmers according to their land holdings.
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Kulhs are traditional irrigation channels found in mountainous regions of Himachal Pradesh. They carry water from glaciers and streams to villages downstream. Parts of Himachal Pradesh developed kulh systems over 400 years ago to divert water from streams into man-made channels to irrigate numerous hillside villages. The kulhs were managed cooperatively by villagers and provided both irrigation and water to replenish springs. However, many kulhs became defunct after being taken over by the Irrigation Department. Kulhs are constructed along natural gradients using rocks, wood, or dug channels to regulate water flow for irrigation, water mills, and equitable distribution to farmers according to their land holdings.
Kulhs are traditional irrigation channels found in mountainous regions of Himachal Pradesh. They carry water from glaciers and streams to villages downstream. Parts of Himachal Pradesh developed kulh systems over 400 years ago to divert water from streams into man-made channels to irrigate numerous hillside villages. The kulhs were managed cooperatively by villagers and provided both irrigation and water to replenish springs. However, many kulhs became defunct after being taken over by the Irrigation Department. Kulhs are constructed along natural gradients using rocks, wood, or dug channels to regulate water flow for irrigation, water mills, and equitable distribution to farmers according to their land holdings.
Copyright:
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
Kulhs are traditional irrigation channels found in mountainous regions of Himachal Pradesh. They carry water from glaciers and streams to villages downstream. Parts of Himachal Pradesh developed kulh systems over 400 years ago to divert water from streams into man-made channels to irrigate numerous hillside villages. The kulhs were managed cooperatively by villagers and provided both irrigation and water to replenish springs. However, many kulhs became defunct after being taken over by the Irrigation Department. Kulhs are constructed along natural gradients using rocks, wood, or dug channels to regulate water flow for irrigation, water mills, and equitable distribution to farmers according to their land holdings.
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Kulhs in Himachal Pradesh
What is a kulh?
Kulhs are water channels found in precipitous
mountain areas. These channels carry water from glaciers to villages in the Spiti valley of Himachal Pradesh. Where the terrain is muddy, the kul is lined with rocks to keep it from becoming clogged. In the Jammu region too, similar irrigation systems called kuhls are found Additional facts about kulhs Parts of Himachal Pradesh had evolved a local system of canal irrigation called kulhs over 4 hundred years ago. The water flowing in the streams was diverted into man-made channels which took this water to numerous villages down the hillside. The management of the water flowing in these kulhs was by common agreement among all the villages. During the planting season , water was first used by the village farthest away from the source of the kulh and then by villages higher up. These kulhs were managed by two or three people who were paid by the villagers. In addition to irrigation, water from these kulhs also percolated into the soil and fed springs at various points. After the kulhs were taken over by the Irrigation Department , most of them became defunct and there is no amicable sharing of water as before. Construction of a kuhl In cold deserts of Himachal Pradesh kulhs (water channels) are built along the hill gradient for maintaining proper gravity for irrigation In dry temperate zone, kulhs (wooden water channels) are generally made by making notches at the natural water sources and the water is diverted to the fields for irrigation to different terraces, using the natural gravitational flow of water In west Himalayan cold deserts for the optimum harnessing of water for irrigation, water channels are constructed along the natural gradients. In upper Kinnaur, the channels (kulhs) are simply dug in the ground to regulate the flow of water. Distribution of kuhl water in fields
In the cold deserts of Himachal Pradesh, participatory management is employed
for distribution of water. In the West Himalayan cold deserts, all the irrigation channels (Kuhls) cannot be run satisfactorily due to non-availability of sufficient water from Nallas/Khads In Spiti valley, the farmers have developed the irrigation water distribution system on the basis of their land holdings, in which every field is irrigated timely. In Kinnaur and other regions, nallas passing through a village are harvested on turn basis called pala. Temporary channels are dug by the farmers towards their fields. The whole community is divided on the basis of number of farm families and one family gets one full water day to irrigate their fields turnwise Use of kulh water for running water mills Kulhs are built along the hill gradient for maintaining proper gravity for irrigation and running water mills. Wooden water channels are also used for running water-flour mills. These wooden channels are generally made by making notches at the natural water sources and the water is diverted to the water mill, using the natural gravitational flow of water. Since the topography of the area consists of very high slopes and rocky terrain's, wooden water channels are used at many places as water passes from one place to another. Granite stones are used for grinding food grains. Long wooden channel placed at steep gradient is used for maintaining the high speed of the water flow. This is necessary for maintaining the high speed of the water mills wheel Some pictures of kulhs Thank You and Hope you enjoyed my presentation!