ABSTRACT
The tasks of operation, maintenance and management for irrigation service supply have already been described a number of times in this book, particularly in the case studies of the Lower Bhavani project (section 1.6), the Curu Valley (section 2.7) and Keveral Farm (section 2.8). These tasks consist of running the infrastructural supply headworks and networks between the locations at which irrigation water is socially appropriated - the five base components of supply - through to the points at which the water reaches farmers' fields. Such tasks include O M & M of pumps and their power units, monitoring and repairing water storage investments, desilting and clearing weed infestation from distribution channels and irrigation scheduling in the supply of water to farmers. Where restorative maintenance or asset replacement is required, financial outlays may be classified as current or as capital costs, depending on the scale of the work (section 3.1).
