auseef Ahmad, a young, vibrant and qualified manager of a coloured bell pepper (capsicum) crop in Kallar Kahar, Chakwal district, a rain-fed area in the Punjab, is very happy after installing soil moisture sensors at his farm. He is saving almost half of the water than the past practice. This modern sensor helps him estimate soil moisture and determine whether or not he needs to irrigate the crop again.

The International Water Management Institute, an international non-government organisation, started this distribution of sensors to farmers in select parts of the country under its project - Water Resource Accountability in Pakistan. The sensors have been distributed in two districts each in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The initiative was first launched in the Punjab in 2021 and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2024.

“The IWMI contacted us some six months ago. They installed the soil moisture sensor at our place - Bostan Agriculture, Kallar Kahar. The sensor is useful for all farmers irrespective of the scale,” Tauseef tells The News on Sunday, adding, “It is saving us 30 percent of the energy and water. Not only are we saving money up front, it is also good for the soil.” He hopes that the new system will have a beneficial effect on the yield. Ahmad says he was using 12,000 to 14,000 litres of water per day earlier before installing the sensor. He has found that 8,000 litres of water is enough.

According to Abubakar, the IWMI district officer in Chakwal, as many as 44 Chameleon soil moisture sensors have been installed across Chakwal to monitor soil moisture levels and optimise irrigation practices.

Farmers report that the sensors have significantly improved water use efficiency, especially for wheat crop and vegetables. In Chakwal, using sensors has reduced wheat irrigations from five to three, saving the farmers about Rs 10,000 per acre. For vegetables, the sensors have cut irrigations from ten to seven times, similarly lowering the associated costs.

Chakwal is a mostly rain-fed area. People use tube-wells and electric power to irrigate their fields. The sensors are saving water, time, energy/ fuel costs and helping enhance production.

Under its water governance, accountability and management project, the IWMI started installing soil moisture sensors in Mansehra and Charsadda in 2024. The field and research team of the organisation frequently visits and checks the sensor and gets fmers’ feedback .

Dr Attique Rehman, a progressive farmer from Baffa tehsil of Mansehra district is experimenting with these sensors on his six-kanal farm to grow Kiwi fruit.

“I recently started using this sensor as a pilot project. I have found it very useful. These fruits need a certain amount of water. If the plants are over-irrigated, the fruit rots,” he says, adding, “the sensor with its green, blue and red light helps me figure the moisture in soil.” The green light indicates sufficient water, blue means there is no need for further watering and red tells that the soil needs irrigating due to moisture depletion.

The IWMI considers water security a defining challenge for development. Water security is also essential for a safe, sustainable future. Water security means achieving and sustaining access to an acceptable quantity and quality of water for health, livelihoods, ecosystems and production, coupled with an acceptable level of water-related risks to people, environment and economies. Climate change is causing water risks to increase with every increment in warning, leaving rural communities and small farmers the most exposed. The IWMI believes change is needed across the water system.

The WRAP is funded by Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office/ UK Aid. It is meant to “strengthen the governance of water at national and provincial levels, supporting adaptation to climate change and improving environmental sustainability.” The IWMI deals with climate resilience solutions for improving water governance.

So far, the IWMI has installed 299 soil moisture sensors in Chakwal and Okara districts in the Punjab and in Mansehra and Charsadda districts in the KP as part of its WRAP project. According to the IWMI officials these sensors are not very expensive considering they have a long life with battery-powered systems. The farmers can read the data either through a card, or by connecting the sensors to the wi-fi network.

Dr Rehman says the government should encourage and educate farmers about modern technologies as these can help save water, time, energy and resources and improve productivity.

IWMI officials say it is up to the governments to expand the use of these technologies across the country.

The author is a staff reporter. He can be reached at vaqargillani@gmail.com