Full procedure Drill a well or take irrigation water for a farm

Have the land recorded for irrigation

Extract and provisional category 2-P from the land department of the district administration.

1. 1. Request the extract from the land register
   Where: Land department of the district administration
   The extract shows the plot, its owner or leaseholder and its category. Only the holder of the land, or his notarised representative, may request it.
   Bring: ID card or passport of the applicant
   You receive: Extract from the land register
   Cost: IS 30
   Time: 30–120 min in the queue, 10–15 min at the counter, 3–5 days until the next step
2. 2. Have the land recorded in the provisional category 2-P
   Where: Land department of the district administration
   Land recorded as rain-fed (bogara) does not receive a water-use permit, and land without a water-use permit is not recorded as irrigated. The department therefore records it as “irrigated, subject to permit” for 90 days. If the permit is not presented within that time the land returns to rain-fed and the extract is requested again.
   Bring: Extract from the land register, ID card or passport of the applicant
   You receive: Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”)
   Cost: IS 45
   Time: 20–90 min in the queue, 10–20 min at the counter, 5–10 days until the next step

Join the water users' association

Membership of the association of the canal and a place in the turn schedule of the water master.

3. 3. Apply for membership at the association's general meeting
   Where: Water users' association of the canal (with its water master)
   Hours: General meeting: first Sunday of March and of September, 10:00
   The board admits members at the general meeting, held on the first Sunday of March and the first Sunday of September in the association's office or, if the office is cold, in the village school. An application handed in between meetings waits for the next one. The entry fee is paid at the meeting, in cash som, against the association's receipt book.
   Bring: Extract from the land register, Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”), ID card or passport of the applicant
   Cost: entry fee, IS 150 (cash som only)
   Time: 0 min in the queue, 90–240 min at the counter, 7–60 days until the next step
4. 4. Have the farm written into the turn schedule by the water master
   Where: Water users' association of the canal (with its water master)
   Who: The water master (mirab)
   The water master (mirab) writes the farm into the turn schedule of its branch ditch: day, hour and duration of each watering, in proportion to the area. The farm's turn begins when the water reaches the farm's gate, not when the gate upstream is opened.
   Bring: Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”)
   You receive: Membership certificate of the water users' association, with the farm's place in the turn schedule
   Time: 0–30 min in the queue, 30–60 min at the counter, 1–7 days until the next step

Drill and register a well

Hydrogeological conclusion, consent to drill and well passport of the Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service.

Choose the source of the water. Other option: Obtain an outlet from the canal.

5. 5. Order the hydrogeological conclusion for the site
   Where: Hydrogeology laboratory of the Faculty of Geography and Earth Sciences
   The laboratory's hydrogeologist visits the plot, consults the borehole maps of 1961–1978 and states the expected depth of the water, the yield and the distance to the nearest registered well. A conclusion is for one site: moving the well by more than 20 m requires a new one.
   Bring: Extract from the land register, ID card or passport of the applicant
   You receive: Hydrogeological conclusion for the site
   Cost: IS 900
   Cost: per metre of expected depth, IS 4 per metre
   Time: 20–60 min in the queue, 20–40 min at the counter, 14–30 days until the next step
6. 6. Obtain the consent to drill (Form GW-1)
   Where: Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service: register of wells
   The Service checks that the site is at least 300 m from any registered well of another owner and outside the sanitary protection zones of the city water intakes. The consent names the licensed contractor and the number of its rig; a change of contractor is a new consent.
   Bring: Hydrogeological conclusion for the site, Extract from the land register, Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”), Membership certificate of the water users' association, with the farm's place in the turn schedule, ID card or passport of the applicant
   You receive: Consent to drill a well (Form GW-1)
   Cost: IS 250
   Time: 30–90 min in the queue, 15–25 min at the counter, 10–20 days until the next step
7. 7. Sign the contract with a licensed drilling contractor and notify the Service
   Where: Licensed drilling contractors
   Rigs are booked for spring, after the thaw and before the canals are full; a contract signed in April is usually drilled in September. The Service is notified of the start three working days before, by telephone and in writing; the telephone call alone is not counted.
   Bring: Consent to drill a well (Form GW-1)
   Cost: drilling, per metre, IS 95 per metre
   Cost: casing pipe, per metre, IS 60 per metre
   Time: 0–30 min in the queue, 30–60 min at the counter, 14–120 days until the next step
8. 8. Have the well drilled, cased and developed
   Where: Licensed drilling contractors (On the plot, at the point marked in the hydrogeological conclusion)
   Who: The drilling contractor
   The depth of each layer is written in the drilling log, which is kept in pencil, since ink runs in the rain. An observer of the Service may come at any time and signs the log at each change of rock; a log without his signature at a change of rock is not accepted for the passport.
   You receive: Drilling log, signed at each change of rock
   Time: 0 min in the queue, 60–120 min at the counter, 3–10 days until the next step
9. 9. Carry out the pumping test before the Service's officer
   Where: Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service: register of wells (At the well)
   The well is pumped for 24 hours without a break and the water level is read every hour. A break of more than ten minutes, including for a power cut, restarts the test from the first hour. The officer takes a water sample for the laboratory and leaves with the readings.
   Bring: Drilling log, signed at each change of rock, Consent to drill a well (Form GW-1)
   You receive: Report of the 24-hour pumping test
   Cost: officer's attendance, 24 hours, IS 380
   Cost: water analysis, IS 140
   Time: 0 min in the queue, 1440–1500 min at the counter, 5–10 days until the next step
10. 10. Collect the passport of the well, with its register number
    Where: Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service: register of wells
    The register number is painted on the well head, on the side facing the road, in figures at least 5 cm high. The well is now registered; it may not yet be used.
    Bring: Report of the 24-hour pumping test, Drilling log, signed at each change of rock
    You receive: Passport of the well, with its register number
    Cost: IS 60
    Time: 10–40 min in the queue, 5–10 min at the counter, 1–3 days until the next step

Obtain the water-use permit

Permit of the water-use permits section of the Talas Basin Agricultural Directorate, issued for five years.

11. 11. Collect Form WU-2 from the Directorate and obtain the flow note
    Where: Talas River Hydrological Monitoring Service: register of wells
    The Service issues the flow note once the Directorate has asked for it, and the Directorate asks once the note is attached to the application. The applicant therefore carries the Directorate's request (Form WU-2) to the Service himself, with the well passport or the approval of the outlet. For a well the note gives the permitted draw from the pumping test; for an outlet, the share of the canal's flow in an average and in a dry year.
    Bring: Extract from the land register
    You receive: Request of the Directorate for a flow note (Form WU-2), Flow note for the source (permitted draw)
    Cost: IS 120
    Time: 30–90 min in the queue, 10–20 min at the counter, 7–14 days until the next step
12. 12. Pay the fee at Talasbank
    Where: Talasbank (any branch)
    With Form BI-0401 (payment order for state duty). The purpose of payment is written as “water-use permit, surface or underground”, crossing out the word that does not apply.
    Cost: permit fee, IS 300
    Cost: per hectare in the permit, IS 4 per hectare
    Time: 20–60 min in the queue, 5–10 min at the counter, 0–1 days until the next step
13. 13. Submit Form WU-3 with the full set of documents for the commission
    Where: Water-use permits section, Talas Basin Agricultural Directorate
    The commission sits on the second and fourth Wednesday. An application received after 12:00 on the Monday before goes to the following sitting. The well passport or the approval of the outlet is attached in the original and two copies.
    Bring: Extract from the land register, Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”), Membership certificate of the water users' association, with the farm's place in the turn schedule, Request of the Directorate for a flow note (Form WU-2), Flow note for the source (permitted draw), ID card or passport of the applicant
    Time: 30–120 min in the queue, 15–30 min at the counter, 14–30 days until the next step
14. 14. Collect the water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres
    Where: Water-use permits section, Talas Basin Agricultural Directorate
    The permit gives the annual limit in cubic metres and the months in which water may be drawn. Water drawn outside those months is drawn without a permit, even within the limit.
    You receive: Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres
    Time: 10–40 min in the queue, 5–10 min at the counter, 1–3 days until the next step
15. 15. Return to the land department to have the land recorded as irrigated
    Where: Land department of the district administration
    Within the 90 days of category 2-P. The department writes the permit's number into the register and issues a new extract; the earlier extract is handed back and cancelled.
    Bring: Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres, Provisional land category 2-P (“irrigated, subject to permit”), Extract from the land register
    You receive: Extract from the land register with the land recorded as irrigated
    Cost: IS 30
    Time: 30–120 min in the queue, 10–15 min at the counter, 3–5 days until the next step

Fit and verify the water meter

Meter of an approved model, verified by Iradstandart and sealed by the Directorate.

16. 16. Obtain Iradstandart's certificate for the meter model
    Where: Iradstandart, State Agency for Standards, Metrology and Certification
    Meters reading in gallons are not approved, including those whose dial can be turned to cubic metres.
    Bring: Invoice of the foreign supplier
    You receive: Certificate that the water meter model is approved
    Cost: IS 85
    Time: 20–60 min in the queue, 10–15 min at the counter, 3–7 days until the next step
17. 17. Have the meter verified on the test bench
    Where: Iradstandart, State Agency for Standards, Metrology and Certification (Talas, Jibek Jolu Avenue 60, testing laboratory in the courtyard)
    The meter is brought dry and clean, in its box. The bench takes meters up to 150 mm; a larger meter is verified at the well by the Service under Iradstandart's supervision, at the Service's rate.
    Bring: Certificate that the water meter model is approved
    You receive: Verification certificate of the water meter
    Cost: IS 140
    Time: 20–90 min in the queue, 10–20 min at the counter, 5–10 days until the next step
18. 18. Have the meter sealed on site by the Directorate's inspector
    Where: Water-use permits section, Talas Basin Agricultural Directorate (At the well or the outlet)
    The inspector seals the meter and the pipe joint before it and writes the opening reading in the permit. Until the seal is fixed, water is counted by the hours of the turn at the full flow of the pipe, whatever was actually drawn.
    Bring: Verification certificate of the water meter, Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres
    You receive: Act of sealing of the water meter, with the opening reading
    Cost: IS 50
    Time: 0 min in the queue, 20–40 min at the counter, 3–10 days until the next step

Connect the pump to the power network

Seasonal connection by Talas Electric Networks at the agricultural tariff (only if the water is pumped).

19. 19. Obtain the technical conditions for the pump ★ optional
    Where: Talas Electric Networks: connections department
    Only if the water is pumped. The conditions state the transformer, the line and the agricultural tariff. A pump connected for the season is disconnected on 16 October and reconnected on 1 April on a new application.
    Bring: Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres, Extract from the land register with the land recorded as irrigated, ID card or passport of the applicant
    You receive: Technical conditions for connecting the pump (agricultural tariff)
    Cost: IS 95
    Cost: per kW of the motor, IS 6 per kW
    Time: 30–120 min in the queue, 10–20 min at the counter, 10–20 days until the next step
20. 20. Have the pump connected and the seasonal meter sealed ★ optional
    Where: Talas Electric Networks: connections department (At the pump house)
    The electrician of Talas Electric Networks connects the pump and seals the meter. The pump is not started until the water meter is sealed, since its first hours would otherwise be counted at the full flow of the pipe.
    Bring: Technical conditions for connecting the pump (agricultural tariff), Act of sealing of the water meter, with the opening reading
    You receive: Act of connection of the pump, with the seasonal meter sealed
    Cost: IS 260
    Time: 0 min in the queue, 60–120 min at the counter, 5–15 days until the next step

Register the structure with the Technical Inventory Bureau

Technical passport of the well head and pump house, or of the outlet.

21. 21. Order the technical inventory of the structure
    Where: Technical Inventory Bureau
    The Bureau measures the well head, the pump house and the pipe to the first field, or the gate and flume of the outlet, and draws them at 1:100. The pump house is a building and the well a structure; they are entered on separate sheets and charged separately.
    Bring: Extract from the land register with the land recorded as irrigated, Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres, ID card or passport of the applicant
    Cost: structure, IS 160
    Cost: pump house (building), IS 120
    Time: 30–120 min in the queue, 10–20 min at the counter, 10–20 days until the next step
22. 22. Collect the technical passport of the water structure (well head and pump house, or outlet)
    Where: Technical Inventory Bureau
    You receive: Technical passport of the water structure (well head and pump house, or outlet)
    Time: 10–40 min in the queue, 5–10 min at the counter, 1–3 days until the next step

Pay for the season and receive the turn card

Season's water fee at the water users' association; first watering by turn from 1 April.

23. 23. Pay the season's water fee at the association by 25 March
    Where: Water users' association of the canal (with its water master)
    In cash som at the association's office against its receipt book. The fee is charged on the hectares in the permit, whatever is sown. A farm with a well pays it too, as the water reaches its fields through the association's ditches. A member in arrears on 1 April is not given a turn, and his water passes to the next farm downstream.
    Bring: Membership certificate of the water users' association, with the farm's place in the turn schedule, Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres
    You receive: Turn card for the irrigation season
    Cost: season's water fee per hectare, IS 38 per hectare (cash som only)
    Time: 30–180 min in the queue, 5–10 min at the counter, 0–7 days until the next step
24. 24. Pay the groundwater extraction charge ★ optional
    Where: Water-use permits section, Talas Basin Agricultural Directorate
    Only for a well. Charged at 0.02 som per cubic metre on last season's meter readings; in the first season, on 6,000 cubic metres per hectare in the permit, whatever is drawn.
    Bring: Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres, Act of sealing of the water meter, with the opening reading
    Cost: 6,000 m³ per hectare at 0.02 som (first season), IS 120 per hectare
    Time: 20–60 min in the queue, 10–15 min at the counter, 0–1 days until the next step
25. 25. Receive the first watering by turn on or after 1 April
    Where: Water users' association of the canal (with its water master) (At the farm's gate)
    Who: The water master (mirab)
    Hours: From 1 April to 15 October, at the hour on the turn card (night turns included)
    The water master opens the gate, or allows the pump to start, at the hour on the turn card, and writes the meter readings at the start and end. In a dry year under Executive Directive 2022/14 the Directorate imposes a rotation: the turn card is replaced by a rotation card, on which the days are fewer and the hours earlier.
    Bring: Turn card for the irrigation season, Water-use permit, with the annual limit in cubic metres, Act of sealing of the water meter, with the opening reading
    Time: 0 min in the queue, 30–60 min at the counter, 0 days until the next step