<aside> 🚜 Groundwater depletion in Punjab, particularly in Jalandhar, has reached alarming levels, with extraction depths reaching 150-200 meters across central Punjab. This crisis is driven by the over-extraction of 14 billion cubic meters annually, and worsened by subsidized electricity and water-intensive rice cultivation. As a result, groundwater levels are predicted to drop below 300 meters by 2039, making it unusable. In Jalandhar alone, groundwater levels have fallen by over 20 meters in recent decades, forcing farmers to invest heavily in deeper wells and more powerful pumps. This over-reliance on groundwater, which supports over 60% of India's irrigation, has left 85.9% of Punjab's farming households in debt due to rising irrigation costs and threatens an annual financial shortfall of around 79 billion INR in the agricultural sector.
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Punjab, a small state in northwest India, derives its name from the Persian words panj (five) and āb (water), meaning the "land of five rivers". Ironically, this state is now regularly in the news for its rapidly depleting groundwater levels. If this continues, Punjab's groundwater is expected to drop below 300 meters by 2039, and the state’s usable groundwater will vanish, as water will become contaminated and not fit for irrigation or drinking.
The state of Punjab is over-extracting 14 billion cubic meters of groundwater every year just to sustain its current cropping pattern. This massive extraction is driven by the cultivation of water-intensive crops such as paddy (rice), which has led to a significant reliance on groundwater irrigation. In fact, over 60 percent of India’s total irrigation is groundwater-fed. This over-reliance on groundwater has created an unsustainable situation that threatens the future of agriculture, water security, and the livelihoods of Punjabi farmers.
“Ours was the first family in the village to use a motor, in 1963, for irrigating 16.6 acres of land. The water used to be at eight feet in the well then,” said Bhajan Singh (62). “By 2000, when the land was divided between us brothers, the water level had plummeted below 80 feet, making it impossible for the monoblock motor to function. The level of groundwater has been dipping even further since then.”
Groundwater has a direct impact on agricultural production, influencing how crops are cultivated. Any fluctuations in groundwater levels can affect the number of crops being farmed, which in turn impacts overall agricultural output. When groundwater levels drop, farmers are more likely to invest more in digging deeper wells and installing more powerful pump systems to access water for irrigation. These increased costs adds to the financial burden on farmers.
Image/quote credits: Sanskriti Talwar
Sukhwinder Singh of Mubarakpur village in Malerkotla district spent over Rs 4 lakh ($4,816.23 USD) in 20 years on digging three tube wells.
According to a 2017 study, around 85.9% of farming households in Punjab are under debt due to rising input costs, including the expenses associated with groundwater overexploitation. The reliance on groundwater irrigation is huge, with over 60% of India’s total irrigation being groundwater dependant. This over-reliance increases the financial strain on farmers as they struggle with the costs of deeper wells and more expensive irrigation systems.
The depletion of groundwater also increases operational costs for farmers. As water becomes scarcer & less accessible, they are forced to drill deeper tube wells and install more powerful pumps, significantly raising their expenses. The number of tube wells in Punjab has increased from 0.19 million in 1970 to 1.48 million in 2019, highlighting the escalating costs and efforts farmers must go through to access water.
Groundwater depletion in Punjab has severe economic implications that threaten Punjabi farmers' livelihoods. As water levels drop, we know that farmers experience high costs digging deeper wells and installing more powerful pumps, leading many into debt. According to the Union Agriculture Minister, 1,056 farmers committed suicide in Punjab during the five-year period 2017–2021. Financial difficulties were a major contributor, and groundwater depletion made matters worse.
The green revolution