independence
for harnessing its water resources for various
agricultural and non-agricultural uses. Irrigation accounts
for nearly 84% of water use (Hashim, 1998). In future nonirrigation
requirements will grow faster; yet by 2025,
irrigation will account for 73% of aggregate water use. The
great challenge of the agricultural sector is to produce more
food from less water by increasing crop water productivity
(Sander et al., 2004). In India, 89% of the 4.0 million ha under
sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L), receives irrigation.
Sugarcane occupies land for about 10 to 18 months and
thus requires adequate irrigation to realize its potential
yield. There is a linear relationship between the growth rate
and optimum soil moisture because only vegetative growth