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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Rice and shine -Manu Moudgil

Rice and shine -Manu Moudgil

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published Published on Jul 23, 2016   modified Modified on Jul 23, 2016
-India Water Portal

How paddy grew in popularity in Punjab and continues to steal the show, thanks to lack of alternatives for farmers.

Take the roads of Punjab during the monsoon and you will find most fields turned into pools of water. It’s mainly the water pulled out from the underground vault to support the kharif crop of paddy. Neither a native plant nor suited to the agro-climatic region, paddy has pushed out maize and cotton, which were common in the pre-green revolution era. From 2,27,000 hectares in 1960, the area under paddy rose to 26,12000 hectares by the year 2000. A growth rate of 1,050 percent!

Last year, Punjab contributed 93.5 lakh tonnes of rice to the central pool, which was around 30 percent of the total stock. This, however, required 48,105 million cubic metres of water. In fact, estimates by the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices suggest that to grow one kilogram of rice, 5337 litres of water is required, which is double the figure for West Bengal (2605 litres), a natural habitat for the crop.

The conventional method of rice cultivation requires flood irrigation (730 mm per hectare) as it helps check the growth of weeds. This is why paddy was traditionally grown mostly on floodplains of rivers and around drains in Punjab. Expansion of irrigation canals and accessibility to groundwater through pumpsets meant more area could be brought under this crop. Allowance of free power to operate these pumpsets furthered the cause even though it came at the cost of receding groundwater table. As many as 81 percent blocks in the state are either overexploited or critical.

At present, the state has around 14 lakh tubewell power connections. In 1970, there were only 1.92 lakh tubewells.

How we plant

In 2009, Punjab passed the Punjab Preservation of Sub-Soil Water Act fixing the date for transplantation of paddy as June 10. Punjab government often extends the date by five days. This is done to take maximum benefit of monsoon rains for irrigation and to reduce pressure on the groundwater table. It has been found that the plantation done post June 10 reduces groundwater consumption by over eight percent while further shifting of plantation date by 10 days can reduce the consumption by more than 26 percent.

“The transplantation date can also be fixed region or block wise depending on the groundwater situation there. Reducing the power supply to tubewells after one month of transplantation may also force the farmers keep the fields moist instead of flooded all the time,” says Dr Shergill.

Please click here to read more.

India Water Portal, 22 July, 2016, http://www.indiawaterportal.org/articles/rice-and-shine


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