This is, indeed, highly gratifying to observe that high efficiency irrigation systems have established their worth with the farming community in Punjab and their acceptance is accelerating on day to day basis. The benefits of these HEISs have been experienced pragmatically by the beneficiaries and their interviews reveal that substantial savings in water, fertilizers, pesticides especially the weedicides, energy, and labor have been realized on most of the same. As a result extensive installation of drip and sprinkler irrigation systems under ( ) project in progress which, indeed, is helping in combating with the shortage of irrigation water in the country on one hand and is proving effective in bringing the yield levels of crops of the country at par with the world standards on the other. Their affectivity, however, largelydepends upon accurate scheduling of irrigation through the same and a definite rise in their efficiency may be accrued through proper monitoring of the schedules both with respect to their preparation as well as their implementation. Since HEISs are relatively a new intervention in Pakistan, there exists a dearth of relevant printed material regarding various operational aspects of the systems especially in relation topreparation of fertigation, irrigation and chemigation schedules. Perhaps, the most critical and the most wanted facet of these newly introduced systems is the preparation of proper irrigation schedules for various crops being grown in their command. In addition, the training of project staff and the users of the systems regarding these schedules covering their understanding and implementation in the field appears to be a missing link. A fair analysis of the factors leading to such gaps reflects that lack of technical material on the subject is the primary reasonThe effort made by PSC in the form of this manual is expected to serve the purpose in question. Solved examples of preparation of schedules for a number of crops have been added to give an in depth orientation to the reader. Through requisite review of this manual, it will not only be possible to check and monitor the irrigation schedules supplied on some of the sites by the SSCs for their authenticity and accuracy but it will also enable the project staff especial ly the HEIS teams to prepare and provide the same at the farms/sites without these schedules on instant basis.
Irrigation Scheduling under High Efficiency (Pressurized) Irrigation Systems.
