1 REASONS FOR ABANDONING AGRO-WELLS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY S. Pathmarajah Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture University of Peradeniya H. M. Somarathna Department of Agricultural Extension, Faculty of Agriculture University of Peradeniya SUMMARY An empirical study was performed in the hard rock areas of the Anuradhapura district to study the reasons for abandoning agro-wells. The required information was gathered by interviewing 131 agro-well farmers in the selected area. The study revealed that 54% of the agro-wells are constructed in fields, which had prior access to surface irrigation water. Currently, the cost of construction of an agro-well including water pump is about Rs.107,000.00, which is too high for an average farmer to meet even with partial subsidy. As a result, about 77% of the wells are not lined or partially lined and about 45% of the farmers do not have water pumps of their own. Furthermore, 32% of the wells are neglected due to improper selection of site, salinity and/or economic reasons. It is found that about 43% of the existing agro- wells are underutilized (command area less than 0.6 ha) due to lack of knowledge on operation and maintenance of wells and water pumps, lack of knowledge on selection of crops and on-farm water management, and / or due to financial difficulties. The problem of water sharing also has contributed to this to certain extent. Existence of primary salinity and possible development of secondary salinity need to be investigated, and management options should be suggested accordingly. Training of agro-well owners on operation and maintenance of water pumps, water management practices and selection of crops are also suggested. Rehabilitation of abandoned agro-wells should be considered and the reasons for abandoning must be rectified. Formulation of a water sharing mechanism through land consolidation or land pooling could be an option to assure efficient use of agro-wells. Therefore, to prevent the problem of abandoning or under utilization of agro- wells, a viable local authority must be formed to regulate the construction of agro- wells and provide necessary agronomic and technical backup to the farmers on long- term basis. This authority could obtain the services of the relevant government institutions such Research Stations and In-service Training Institutes. The existing farmers organizations can play an important role in assisting such institution.