VDM Verlag An Economic Analysis of Watershed: A Developing Country Perspective

Following the Hanumanth Rao committee report Government of India initiated Watershed Development Programmes (WDPs) to improve and sustain productivity of the semiarid regions of the country at higher level. The aim of such initiatives are also to fulfill the needs of rural communities for food, fuel, fodder, and timber as majority of rural people are depending on the natural resource for their livelihood. WDPs are being given importance in the development plans for India and by donor agencies as they promote sustainable use of natural resources and improve the rural economy of India. This book presents an economic cost-benefit appraisal of select watershed development projects in India. The findings of this study suggest that watershed development projects initiated to improve the economy and ecology of India's dry and semiarid regions are economically viable and socially desirable. This book will be of special interest to policy makers and students & scholars in development economics.