Dr Rajan Aggarwal from the Punjab Agricultural University says the perennial crop cycle of wheat and rice has led the water level to fall to drastic levels.
A new study by NASA has revealed declining freshwater availability in northern and eastern India, sparking fresh fears about fast depleting water table in Punjab- a state heavily dependent on water-intense crops for the sustenance of a large part of its population.
The first of its kind study that used 14 years of observations from a US and German-led spacecraft mission has revealed that dry areas are getting drier and Earth’s wetland areas are getting wetter due to a variety of reasons, including human water management, climate change and natural cycles.
The north Indian state of Punjab that is the vanguard of India’s food security is now facing a crisis of sorts over fast-depleting groundwater reserves.
Dr Rajan Aggarwal, a hydrologist at the Punjab Agricultural University, says water table in some areas in Punjab is falling at the rate of one meter per year.
“Forty years ago, there were 200,000 tube wells, today there are 1,400,000 tube-well drawing water [for irrigation]. About 80 per cent of our water is used in the agriculture sector,” he tells SBS Punjabi.
“Punjab has achieved an unenviable position in terms of contributing to the food safety of India. But on the other hand, we have brought a massive crisis of natural resources upon ourselves.
“On an average, the water table in Punjab is falling by 50 centimetres a year.
“The worst is central parts of Punjab where the water table is falling nearly a meter every year.”
Dr Aggarwal says the perennial crop cycle of growing wheat and rice has led the water level to fall to such drastic levels.
Most farmers in Punjab stick to cultivating wheat crop in the winter months and rice in summer months because the government of India pays minimum support price for these but not for other cash crops.
He says the rapidly declining availability of fresh water in Punjab poses a substantial threat to India’s food security.
Click on the player at the top to listen to Dr Aggarwal's interview.
