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The history of water management system in Uzbek SSR
(1950
–
1990)
Oybek KOMILOV
1
Andijan State University
ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received April 2025
Received in revised form
15 May 2025
Accepted 15 June 2025
Available online
25 June 2025
The article provides a detailed analysis of the process of
irrigation and land reclamation in Uzbekistan during the period
1950
–
1990, with a particular focus on the role of the cotton
monopoly. Moreover, the article provides an analysis of the
Soviet government's measures to improve the irrigation system
and the results thereof, drawing upon primary sources. During
this period, the primary objective of the development of
irrigation and land reclamation projects in the republic was
inextricably linked with the process of developing reserves and
grey lands.
2181-
1415/©
2025 in Science LLC.
https://doi.org/10.47689/2181-1415-vol6-iss3-pp22-31
This is an open access article under the Attribution 4.0 International
(CC BY 4.0) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.ru)
Keywords:
irrigation-land-reclamation,
cotton monopoly,
Soviet government,
irrigation system,
dredger,
state farm,
drainage,
collector,
virgin lands.
O‘zbekiston SSR suv xo‘jaligi tarixi (1950–
1990-yillar)
ANNOTATSIYA
Kalit so‘zlar
:
suv xoʻjaligi,
paxta monokulturasi,
sovet hukumati,
irrigatsiya tizimi,
drager,
sovxoz,
drenaj,
kollektor,
qo
‘
riq yerlar.
Maqolada
1950
–
1990-yillarda
paxta
monokulturasi
sharoitida O‘zbekistonda irrigatsiya va melioratsiya holati
muammosi atroflicha yoritilgan. Bundan tashqari, birlamchi
manbalar asosida sovet hukumatining irrigatsiya tizimini
rivojlantirishga qaratilgan chora-tadbirlari va ularning
oqibatlari tahlil qilinadi.
1
Doctor of Sciences (DSc) in History, Professor, Department of History of Uzbekistan, Andijan State University.
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История водного хозяйства Узбекской ССР (1950–
1990 годы)
АННОТАЦИЯ
Ключевые слова:
водное хозяйства,
хлопковая монокультура,
советское правительства,
ирригационная система,
землесос,
совхоз,
дренаж,
коллектор,
целинные земли.
В статье подробно освещена проблема состояния
ирригации и мелиорации Узбекистана в условиях хлопковой
монокультуры в 1950–1990 годах. Кроме того, на основе
первоисточников,
проанализированы
мероприятия
Советского правительства, направленные на развитие
оросительной системы и их последствия. В этот период
основная цель развития ирригационно
-
мелиоративных
работ в республике была неразрывно связана с процессом
освоения осушенных и целинных земель.
During the years of Soviet power, the irrigation and melioration works were
rapidly developed based on the essence of the cotton monopoly policy in Uzbekistan's
agricultural sector. In the conditions of the cotton monopoly, further development of
irrigation works in the republic, as well as uncontrolled irrigation of large cotton fields
and inefficient use of water resources, gradually led to a serious problem, such as water
shortage. The First President of the Republic of Uzbekistan gave an appropriate
assessment of these processes:
“
Due to the monopoly of cotton, the scientifically based
crop rotation system was broken, the land lost its productivity, and the lack of water
resources increased
”
[1, P.19].
During the Soviet era, Uzbekistan was mainly specialized in growing cotton, which
was turned into a base of raw materials, and 90 percent of the grown cotton was
transported to the Center. Water and irrigation, which are the source of life, took the
main place in the performance of these works. Due to the colonial features of the agrarian
policy of the Soviet government, the irrigation and reclamation works were accelerated
in the years after the Second World War.
“
The first post-war five-year (4
th
five-year) plan
was successfully implemented, as a result of the implementation of the plan for the
restoration and further development of the national economy in the republic, great
progress was made in the development of cotton growing, which is considered the main
branch of agriculture
” [
13.P.159]. At the same time, cotton was planted in large areas,
and the harvest from them increased year by year. As a result of the rapid strengthening
of the cotton monopoly under the strict control of the center, cotton cultivation areas
have expanded even more. In 1946, the cotton area was 57,500 hectares, and in 1950, it
expanded to 76,015 hectares. The gross yield of cotton increased from 55,647 tons to
128,472 tons [9, P.26]. However, the development of the cotton industry in this way also
led to the problem of water shortage in some regions. In the post-war years, the
successes and achievements in irrigation works only served collective farms. First of all,
the water was used to irrigate cotton fields. Grain, vegetables, orchards, and other crops
are supplied with water in the second place. Due to water scarcity, private households
are left without water [12, P.45]. Of course, these processes were related to the so-called
cotton monopoly policy of the Soviet government ruling at that time.
As a result of the policy of cotton monopolies, which became more severe in the
50s of the 20
th
century, the size of cultivated areas expanded gradually. Cultivated areas
increased mainly due to the development of reserves and gray lands in the republic.
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Special attention was paid to irrigation works in the acquired lands. In 1950, there were
253,000 hectares of land suitable for irrigated agriculture in the Surkhandarya region of
the Uzbek SSR, of which 130,000 hectares were irrigated [17, P.28]. The irrigated lands in
other regions of the republic were also prepared in terms of irrigation and melioration. In
particular, in 1951, excavation works were carried out in the field of irrigation and
melioration works of the Tashkent region in the volume of 19,378,0 thousand cubic
meters, and 2,221 hectares of protected lands were prepared for irrigation and
melioration, and 496,500 were excavated [3, P.139]. In the Andijan region, only 9.1% of
the plan for irrigation and reclamation work was completed until January 24, 1951.
According to the 1961 production and financial plan, 5,970 tons of cotton were grown in
the
“
Communizm
”
collective farm belonging to the Shahrikhan village council of
Shahrikhan district, and by 1962, 6,599 tons of cotton were produced. It is known from
the given figures that cotton cultivation in the district has been increasing year by year.
Several decisions and orders were issued by the Soviet government to develop and
expand irrigation works in Uzbekistan. In particular, on February 8, 1951, the Council of
Ministers of the Uzbek SSR issued Resolution No. 234
“
On preparing irrigation systems
for the spring of 1951
”
[15, P.79]. In the text of this decision, it was noted that the
preparation of irrigation systems for the spring of 1951 in many regions of the republic
by the USSR Council of Ministers was completely unsatisfactory. By the end of 1951, the
regions of the UzSSR were assigned the task of transitioning to a new irrigation system in
the amount of 368,000 ha. The largest irrigated areas of the republic corresponded to
58,000 ha
–
the Bukhara region, and 52,000 ha
–
the Andijan region. However, these
assignments were not fully implemented in the republic. The main reason for this was,
first of all, insufficient control of irrigation and planting works by the local water
management authorities.
The main goal of the expansion of irrigation works was aimed at the development
of the cotton sector. For this reason, large irrigation facilities were launched in the
republic. For example,
“D
uring the years 1951
–
1955, irrigation facilities were built in the
basins of the Syrdarya, Kashkadarya, Zarafshan rivers, in the lands of Central Ferghana, in
the foothills of Surkhandarya and Amudarya
”
[2, P.70]. The construction of these water
structures, in turn, made it possible to irrigate many areas and also influenced the
expansion of cultivated areas.
On March 13, 1952, the Council of Ministers of the USSR issued a decision
“
On the
progress of the reconstruction of irrigation fountains in the Uzbek SSR and the transition
to a new irrigation system
”.
In this decision, the following information was given
regarding the unsatisfactory performance of reconstruction of irrigation branches and
transition to a new irrigation system by the party and Soviet bodies of the republic:
Instead of 589,000 being transferred to the new irrigation system by March 10 of this
year, only 187,000 or 34.6% of the land was transferred to the new irrigation system
only. In the Tashkent region, instead of 85,000 ha, only 30,000 ha of land were
transferred to a new irrigation system; in the Khorezm region, 23.3% of the plan for
transition to a new irrigation system was fulfilled [16, P. 233]. It can be seen that the
implementation of this decision in the regions of the republic was very low.
On September 6, 1952, the Ministry of Cotton of the USSR issued Order No. 1691
“
On
unsatisfactory use of irrigated lands in the Uzbek SSR
”
[18, P.14]. The fact that the Ministry
of Cotton of the USSR, the Ministry of Water Management of the USSR and its local bodies
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did not pay enough attention to the areas of land that are not used in the irrigation
network, according to its results, the work done on the preparation of the reserve lands in
terms of irrigation and melioration is unsatisfactory, and the preparation of irrigation and
melioration for the harvest of 1952 it was noted that the plan was fulfilled by 74.8% in the
republic. In the irrigation system of Uzbekistan, earthmoving machines were widely used.
In 1953, 108 earthmoving machines were used in the irrigation of the republic, and in
1960, their number was 435 [10, P.11]. The data presented above confirms that the
number of earthmoving machines is increasing year by year.
The main goal of the Soviet government in the development of the irrigation
system was to expand the cotton cultivation area and increase the amount of cotton
production. The decision of the Council of Ministers of the USSR and the Central
Committee of the CPSU dated February 9, 1954,
“
On the further development of cotton
cultivation in the Republic of Uzbekistan in 1954
–
1958,
”
was the program for irrigation
construction in the republic. The expansion of irrigated land areas in Uzbekistan by
600,000 hectares by 1958, of which the expansion of cotton areas by 300,000 hectares
was foreseen in it [5, P.172]. To achieve this goal, the Soviet government paid great
attention to the development of previously empty and neglected reserves and gray lands.
The purpose of the development of irrigation and melioration in the republic was related
to the development of new lands. Based on this, as a result of irrigation and melioration
works, the development of new lands expanded. Acceleration of irrigation works in the
republic during 1955-1959 allowed 160,000 protected lands to be put into operation. In
1965, cultivated areas of Uzbekistan increased by 350,000 ha, including irrigated land by
200,000 ha [14, P.541].
The development of reserves and gray lands in the republic and the establishment of
state cotton farms and districts on these new lands further increased cotton production. The
construction of a large water facility was also carried out in the southern zone of the
republic, the Surkhan
–
Sherabad desert. Here, there was a large massif of empty land
suitable for irrigation on an area of 145 thousand hectares. From 1955 to January 1958,
21,423 thousand cubic meters of earth and 16,825 cubic meters of concrete and reinforced
concrete were built here for the construction of hydrotechnical structures. This made it
possible to significantly improve the water supply of irrigated lands, and additionally to
irrigate tens of thousands of hectares of new and fertile lands [8, P.49].
On December 21, 1964, according to the Decision No. 718 of the Central Committee
of the Central Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Council of Ministers of the
Uzbek SSR
“
On measures to expand the irrigated lands in Samarkand, Bukhara and
Kashkadarya regions and improve the technique of the irrigation system, to increase the
further supply of water to the irrigated lands
”
, the Uzbek SSR Water The Ministry of
Economy announced its order No. 3 on January 6, 1965. According to it, the Ministry of
Production and Preparation of Agricultural Products of the Uzbek SSR and the Ministries
of Water Management of the UzSSR accepted the proposal of the executive committees of
the Samarkand, Bukhara, Kashkadarya regions on the development of 94,000 hectares of
reserve and new lands during the years 1965
–
1970, as well as 15,000 hectares It was
agreed on the construction of the Amu-Karakol canal and the Amu-Bukhara canal by
24,000 ha, the expansion of the Kattakurgan reservoir by 27,000 ha, and the construction
of Chimkurgan, Pachkamar and Kalkamin reservoirs by 28,000 ha according to the
proposed regions.
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Following the aforementioned decision No. 718 of the Central Committee of the CP
of Uzbekistan and the Council of Ministers of the UzSSR, the Ministry of Production and
Preparation of Agricultural Products of the Uzbek SSR issued Order No. 72 on February 6,
1965. According to this order, the head of the department of production and preparation
of agricultural products of Kashkadarya region, renaming it as
“
Okhunboboev" state farm
on the base of the Chirakchi Production Department, placing it in the central enclosure of
the new
“
Eski Angor
”
state farm on the land of the 3rd section and
“
Kok Dala
”
state farm,
and in the territory of the 3rd section of the Okhunboboev state farm, the total area of
5,800 ha of arable land, including 3400 hectares of irrigated land and 3000 hectares of
cotton cultivation area were assigned. Including:
–
establishment of the
“
Eski Angor
”
state farm based on the
“
Uzgiprozem
”
farm;
–
By March 1, 1965, the production and financial plan for the
“
Eski Angor
”
state
farm should be drawn up and submitted for approval based on the existing regulation
(rule). Lutfullaev (capital construction) and supervise the execution of these tasks.
Berger (irrigation and land reclamation) [19, P.69].
During the ninth five-year period (1971-1975), a total of 513,100 new irrigated
lands were developed in Uzbekistan. Farms specializing in cotton growing were
established on newly acquired lands. In 1975, 5,013,300 tons of cotton were grown in the
republic and handed over to the union thresher [7, P.161]. According to the given data,
cotton cultivation in the republic has increased significantly compared to previous years.
In order to regularly supply the Union with cotton, the Soviet authorities paid great
attention to the system of training middle-level agricultural and water management
personnel. Because of this, their number increased. In the ninth five-year period (1971
–
1975), 6 hydromelioration technical schools trained water management personnel
with secondary education. In particular, Tashkent, Samarkand, Andijan, Urgench,
Surkhandarya, and Nukus hydromelioration educational institutions have been
operating. These educational institutions trained 8,496 specialists in hydromelioration,
hydrotechnical construction, mechanization of hydromelioration works, and automatic
operation of the water management system. It can be said that they continued to grow. In
particular, in 1971
–
1349, in 1972
–
1558, in 1973
–
1981, in 1974
–
1790, and in 1975
–
1818, young specialists with secondary technical education were trained. In these five
years, the number of engineers and technicians of the Ministry of Water Management of
the UzSSR with higher education also increased. Their number was 2164 in 1971, 2368 in
1972, 3337 in 1973, 4941 in 1974, and 6139 in 1975. During five years, 5487 specialists
from higher educational institutions were sent to water management organizations.
It is clear from the given information that by the agrarian policy of the center in the
field of cotton growing, the number of technical personnel trained in the field of
irrigation in the republic gradually increased from year to year. However, the lack of
personnel in the field of irrigation and melioration was noticed in some areas. It is worth
noting that the lack of specialists with diplomas (especially in newly acquired lands) was
considered a serious problem. The authorities and the heads of most agricultural
enterprises were not engaged in creating conditions for specialists to stay at work. Young
specialists who graduated from universities and technical schools and were sent to
villages were not provided with enough housing, they often did not work in their
specialty.
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In accordance with the decision of the Central Committee of the KP of Uzbekistan
and the Council of Ministers of the UzSSR of September 23, 1976
“
On the plan of land
reclamation in 1976
–
1980 and measures to expand the use of meliorated lands
”
in
1976
–
1980, the tasks set by water management and construction organizations of the
Namangan region on the development of new lands done. In the tenth five-year period,
18,400 hectares of newly irrigated land in the region were brought into use, the
reclamation condition of 33,800 hectares of irrigated land was improved [6.P.1]. For four
years and in the last nine months of the tenth five-year plan (1976-1980) in Uzbekistan,
207,600 new irrigated lands were put into circulation, and 454,700 land reclamation
improved [4, P.17]. The improvement of the land reclamation condition has given rise to
a slight increase in productivity in some areas.
However, in the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, serious problems arose in the
field of irrigation and reclamation works of the republic. The decisions, orders issued by
the Soviet government in the field of irrigation were not implemented on time by local
water management bodies. At the same time, it became evident that the reclamation
condition of irrigated land and its secondary salinity, the low level of productivity in
irrigated areas, and the unprofitability of the capital funds allocated to these areas were
not justified.
“
For example, in 1986, one-third of irrigated cropland was damaged due to
repeated salinization. In the 70s and 80s, about 5 thousand irrigated lands were taken
out of agricultural circulation due to the deterioration of land reclamation and 1.6 million
in the period between 1965-1985 irrigated land areas were put into operation, the fixed
assets of automobile enterprises increased by 6 times, but the gross product increased by
only 78%
”
[14.P.554].
According to the plan of 1981, the construction of 26 reclamation facilities with a
total cost of 38.1 million rubles was set in the Karakalpakstan ASSR. 6.7 million rubles
from the balance of 30.4 million rubles on January 1, 1981 were included in the plan.
From January to August, the completion of these works amounted to 2.7 million rubles
(40% of the annual plan was completed). The construction of separate collectors took
more than 8 years. The construction of the KS-4-4 collector began in 1972. During this
period, less than 50% of the estimated value of the land was developed.
Serious work has also been done in improving the condition of irrigated lands and
cultivating them. One of the positive works in the field of reclamation was the
commissioning of horizontal and vertical collectors. But these works were not carried out
in an organized manner in the regions of the republic and were mostly not well
organized. Construction of vertical drainage in Vobkent, Shofirkon, Kogon and Gijduvon
districts of Bukhara region was carried out at an unsatisfactory level. In 1979-1980, only
1.8 million rubles out of 8.4 million rubles were appropriated (21%). In 1981, 1.2 million
rubles, that is, 139,000 rubles (12%) from January to August, were planned to be
appropriated. It is important to note that during the mentioned years, these capital funds
were not adequately utilized in the region and were spent inappropriately. As a result,
many protected lands remained unexploited.
In Gagarin, Sherabad and Termiz districts of Surkhandarya region, the construction
of collectors according to the plan and their reconstruction are far behind. According to
the report of the Water Management Commission of the Supreme Soviet of the UzSSR, the
Ministry of Reclamation and Water Management of the UzSSR and its local bodies
carried out large-scale water management works during the tenth five-year period.
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215,000 irrigated lands were developed or 102% of the plan. Land water supply and
reconstruction of the irrigation system area of more than 1 million ha have been
completed (according to the plan, 665,000 ha). The length of the collector-drainage
network has increased by 8,000 km. Covered horizontal drainage on 326,000 ha area and
vertical drainage on 320,000 ha area have been started. During this period, the material
and technical base of water management was further strengthened. In 1980, the
reclamation fund of water management bodies amounted to 3145 million rubles. The
irrigation network of the republic was equipped with new hydrotechnical structures, that
is, it increased by 6.9 thousand in five years. The number of hydrometric devices has
increased to 2,500.
In 1981, the Ministry of Water Management of the UzSSR set a task for the
comprehensive reconstruction of the irrigation system on an area of 10,000 ha, and for
this purpose, the allocation of 14.2 million rubles of capital funds was considered. From
January to August, 4.1 million rubles (29%) were absorbed, 2095 (21%) were invested.
In the Khorezm region, 3151 were included in 1264 according to the plan (made up
40 percent of the annual assignment). The main attention was paid to the quality of
project-estimate documents for the complex reconstruction of the irrigation system. As
part of the reconstruction, 354 ha of new land, 137 ha of the lands of the Shumanay state
farm in the Karakalpakstan ASSR were planned. The irrigation and collector-drainage
network reconstruction project was envisaged in the Ilich state farm with 376 hectares of
land in the Zadaryo (now Mingbulok) district of the Namangan region. In 1986
–
1990,
17,000 hectares of new land should be developed in Namangan region, water supply
should be improved on 40,000 hectares, land reclamation of 38,000 hectares should be
improved, and 45,000 hectares of old land should be leveled. For this purpose, large-scale
irrigation-reclamation works are being carried out [20.P.5]. According to the calculations
of the Ministry of Agriculture of the USSR, in 1981
–
1985, 2200 electric wire pump units
were sent to the collective farms and state farms of the republic. As a result, the cotton
fields in the new lands were regularly irrigated with the help of pumps. In 1976
–
1980, in
the main directions of the development of the national economy of the USSR, attention
was focused on the development of the Jizzakh steppe, that is, it was emphasized that
“
in
the UzSSR, the development of the Jizzakh steppe should be strengthened.
”
As a result,
nearly 200,000 ha of land was appropriated in the Jizzakh desert. In particular, in the
Dostlik district of the region, 36,500 hectares of land were appropriated in ten years, and
twice as much profit was received from them. In 1975, the district produced
50.1 thousand tons. cotton was made. It is clear from the above that the development of
the Jizzakh desert was directed to the development of cotton production. The cotton
production plan of the Soviet government was excessive, and all local agricultural and
water management authorities were entrusted with the constant supply of raw materials
for the Union threshing floor. Based on the commitment of colonization,
“
In about
30 years, intensive development of new lands in the Jizzakh desert was started.
”
During
this period, 250,300 ha of land was appropriated. Out of this, 70,900 ha corresponded to
the desert massif consisting of inconvenient and unproductive lands far from irrigation
sources.
During the years of Soviet power, the size of irrigated areas in Uzbekistan
gradually increased year by year. The following numbers clearly prove our point.
The irrigated areas in 1950 amounted to 2276 thousand, in 1960 to 2964 thousand,
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to 2696 thousand in 1970, to 3476 thousand in 1980, to 3930 thousand in 1985,
to 4020 thousand hectares in 1986 [11]. But the high expansion of the irrigated areas in
the republic and the year-by-year increase in cotton cultivation made irrigation of other
necessary crops secondary. Most of the water resources were used to irrigate cotton
fields. As a result, the cultivation of grain, vegetables, rice, and horticulture products has
decreased sharply.
Covet authorities tried to expand the irrigated land and build waterworks. In
particular, in 1985, 900 irrigation networks and 92,000 hydrotechnical structures were
developed in the republic. The total length of irrigation canals increased by 197,000 km.
In this year, the indicator of use of water resources was 54.8 km³, in 1989 this indicator
was 50.4 km³, and in 1990 it was 52.4 km³. On average, 85% of the water consumed was
used for irrigation or agriculture. The volume of water used for irrigation in 1985 was
46.3 km³, in 1989 it was 42.3 km³, and in 1990 it was 44.4 km³
[20, p.34].
Summarizing the work done in the fields of irrigation and land reclamation in the
eleventh five-year period, the departments of the Ministry of Land Reclamation and
Water Management of the Republic have mastered 238,600 new irrigated lands,
improved land reclamation by 461,000, and rehabilitated 300,000. reasonably leveled.
These figures are much more than what is indicated in the plan. At the same time, 4 new
reservoirs, including the Andijan reservoir with a capacity of 1,900 million m³, were put
into operation, and the works on the Tuyamoyin hydroelectric station, Khisorak, Zomin,
Okdaryo, Qorovultepa, and Oktepa reservoirs were completed. However, the level of
mineralization of the river water increased due to the collector discharges, as a result of
which the area of land in the republic in this period deteriorated, and flooded with salt
increased to 566,000. Disruption of land reclamation has intensified deformation
processes in the field of irrigation [20.P.37].
In 1986, there were 25,800 km of inter-farm irrigation ditches, 142,000 km of
internal farm canals, 106,000 km of drainage-collectors, as well as 28,000 km of closed
and more than 3,500 km of drainage vertical drains. During this period, the water
management complex of Uzbekistan consisted of more than 180,000 km of irrigation
channels and 230 inter-collective irrigation networks. 120,000 km of collector-drainage
network can also be added to this. During the productive period, the volume of water is
16 billion. 26 large water reservoirs with a capacity of m³ were ope
rated. In this year, the
total irrigated area in the Yozyovon district of Ferghana region was 16,705, of which
3,182 were non-saline, 11,732 were weakly saline, and 1,876 were strong and medium
saline. If we pay attention, the area of irrigated land in Uzbekistan in 1960-1990 was
2 mln. increased to By 1986, irrigated fertile land was 85.8%, and in the same year, grain-
bearing land fell from 57% to 22%. This figure was 35% in 1940. At the same time, due to
the monopoly of cotton in Uzbekistan, there were also cases of forced use and
mobilization for the cotton harvest [19, P.43].
Several irrigated fields in the republic suffered from rising groundwater levels. In
the 1990s, the level of underground water in irrigated lands rose by 3 m. In this period,
the level of underground water in the arable lands of Kyrgyz state and collective farms
(Ellikkala district) is 1.5 m. rose to by mid-1990, there were 245,000 irrigation systems,
50 large water distribution facilities, 47 reservoirs, 23,300 km of inter-farm irrigation
stations, 120,000 km of drainage-collectors, 3,433 wells, including 1.5 million ha land
was irrigated by machine [19.P.51].
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In conclusion, it should be emphasized that in the 50s-80s of the 20th century, the
main goal of the development of irrigation-reclamation works in the republic was
inextricably linked with the process of development of reserves and gray lands.
As mentioned above, in 1950, the size of irrigated areas was 2,276,000 hectares, and in
1986, this indicator increased to 4,020,000 hectares. It can be seen that during the Soviet
era, the irrigated area grew year by year. Acceleration of irrigation gave impetus to
cotton cultivation and further development of cotton farming in the republic. For this
purpose, the development of new lands expanded. As a result, cotton harvest and
cultivation in the republic gradually increased from year to year. The expansion of cotton
plantations has also created a number of serious problems in irrigation. For this reason,
many canals, reservoirs and other hydrotechnical structures were built in the republic.
As a result of the high development of irrigation and melioration works, the land
gradually lost its productivity, the secondary salinity of the land increased, and the
shortage of water resources increased.
As one of the positive works in the field of land reclamation, it is also permissible
to highlight the construction of horizontal and vertical collectors. However, the
development of irrigation-reclamation works eventually led to the formation of a cotton
monopoly in Uzbekistan. The establishment and implementation of the cotton monopoly
policy caused many negative aspects. This policy strengthened the republic
’
s dependence
on the Center, especially in the matter of providing the population with grain and food
products.
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