India’s 1.3 billion people have access to only about 4% of the world’s water resources, and farmers consume almost 90% of the groundwater water available. As global temperatures rise and overuse of water depletes existing resources, the threat to lives and businesses in Asia’s third-largest economy is projected to grow.
Water shortages are already acute: nearly half the country’s population faces high-to-extreme water stress and about 200,000 die each year due to inadequate access to safe water. Stoked by climate change, the water crisis has forced Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to try and turn around decades of established farming practices and convince the country’s most powerful voting bloc to change the crops they plant. Water-guzzlers like rice and wheat are out, corn and pulses are in.
On a scorching summer day in northern India, Ajay Singh sat next to his water pump and scanned his 10 acres of farmland. He once used to grow rice each season to bring in about 150,000 rupees ($2,000) a year, well above the average income in the world’s second-most populous country.
Now on six acres he’s cultivating pearl millet, cow peas, bottle gourd and corn — crops that consume about 80% less water than rice, and also use less labor, fertilizer and electricity. While a water conservation program pays him 7,000 ($93) rupees per acre to plant them, it’s still a gamble: Unlike rice, which the government always buys at a set price, these crops have no guaranteed market.
“I am taking this risk because I have a passion to leave enough water for future generations,” Singh said from his farm in Karnal, an area a few hours drive north of the capital, New Delhi.
For Modi, pushing farmers to change is risky business because of their sheer numbers and political power. Farm income is untaxed in the South Asian nation, and water and electricity are heavily subsidized. Lowering the minimum price at which the government buys food grains from farmers could also backfire at the polls.
If the program in Karnal is any indicator, the task isn’t going to be easy. Few farmers in the rice-growing district, where the water table has been declining by 0.7 meter every year, are keen to experiment with new crops. In its first year in Haryana the project anticipates around 100,000 hectares (247, 105 acres) would switch to alternate crops — but that’s only about 7% of the land used for rice cultivation in the northern state.
Farmers love rice and wheat primarily because of stable prices and assured state purchases. These two staples, along with another thirsty crop, sugar cane, are grown in 40% of the country’s gross farmed area but consume about 80% of its irrigation water. Corn and millets may use less water, but their price stability is unproven.
In the long run, experts say water shortages will make crop diversification an inevitability. Currently India is the world’s biggest extractor of groundwater — more than China and the U.S. combined — accounting for almost a quarter of the total extracted globally. Between 2000 and 2017 its groundwater depletion increased by as much as 23%.
But the change needs to be carefully managed, said Aditya Pratap Dabas, deputy director agriculture and the officer managing the Karnal project. “Changing the farmers’ mindset is the main challenge in implementing the program.”
Besides Haryana, some other states have indirect programs to motivate farmers to move to less water intensive crops. Northern Punjab, a major producer of wheat and rice, is offering cash incentives to farmers who use less electricity to extract ground water. In Maharashtra, home to the financial hub Mumbai, farmers are encouraged to use drip irrigation for sugarcane cultivation.
But for Mahavir Sharma, a 63-year-old farmer in Karnal, it was water scarcity in his part of Haryana that pushed him to start experimenting with corn on four of his 19 acres.
“I have seen in my own experience how rapidly the water level has fallen — it’s now our biggest problem,” Sharma said. “Our work will motivate others. People will realize every drop matters.”
Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm
QUICKTAKE ON SOCIAL:
Follow QuickTake on Twitter: twitter.com/quicktake
Like QuickTake on Facebook: facebook.com/quicktake
Follow QuickTake on Instagram: instagram.com/quicktake
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://bit.ly/2FJ0oQZ
Email us at quicktakenews@gmail.com
QuickTake by Bloomberg is a global news network delivering up-to-the-minute analysis on the biggest news, trends and ideas for a new generation of leaders.
