Decision support system for efficient water management in canal command areas

A decision support system for canal water releases (CWREDSS) was developed to provide demand-based optimal canal water releases for reducing the gap between canal supplies and demands for increasing the water-use efficiency in canal command areas. The developed decision support system (DSS) was evaluated under different situations of the command area of Guvvalagudem major distributary of the Nagarjunasagar Left Canal, Andhra Pradesh, India, as a case study. Results indicate that the CWREDSS is capable of developing releases under different scenarios of varying cropping patterns, groundwater use situations and different rainfall probability levels of the study area, and reduced the gap between demands and supplies considerably. DSS provides suggestions/decisions under different situations of water deficit/surplus. CWREDSS will help irrigation engineers, agronomists and agro-meteorologists in the planning, operation and management of irrigation systems.