Only Switching To New Crops Will Prevent Punjab From Becoming A Dry State

The north-western state of Punjab is facing a drastic decline in agricultural output as it fails to curb the depletion of its groundwater, as per warnings issued by experts.

According to Rajan Aggarwal, who heads the soil and water engineering department at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), groundwater irrigates almost three-quarters of Punjab’s agricultural land. But groundwater levels are dropping by 40-50 cm a year.

A PAU report states that rice and wheat make up 81 per cent of Punjab's irrigated crops. For over the past two decades, the state has contributed 35 per cent of the nation’s rice production and 60 per cent of its wheat. It said the annual demand for irrigation in Punjab is 4.76 mhm against a total annual supply of 3.48 mhm from canal and groundwater resources.

Sunil Jain, the regional director of the Central Ground Water Board for northwest India, claimed groundwater started dropping in 1985 in Punjab, sinking to startling levels in recent years. He added that Punjab gets less than 700 mm of rainfall annually. This compares to a national average of 1,083 mm, according to the World Bank.

Amit Kar, an economist at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, attributed the groundwater deficiency to policies of the government, like free electricity for irrigation, subsidies for digging wells and heavily subsidised diesel fuel for pumps. Amitabh Kant, chief executive officer of NITI Aayog, foretold that India, already water-stressed, is swiftly moving towards becoming water-scarce.

The only way out of this predicament would be switching to new crops. Vinod Kumar Singh, a scientist from Indian Agricultural Research Institute, said:

Jasbir Singh Bains, Punjab's director of agriculture, said India’s state-sponsored Public Distribution System makes farmers reluctant to cultivate other crops. However, efforts are being made to popularise the cultivation of pulses, maize, vegetables and oilseeds.

Farmers are willing to switch to new crops if the government can guarantee proper procurement and funding of the new crops.