Paddy-wheat farming in Punjab, especially during the ongoing farmer’s protests, is raising questions regarding its sustainability. The concern mainly lies in the monocultural practice of focusing on a single crop or species in a farming system at a time.
Monoculture and Its Prevalence in Punjab
Monoculture, a dominant agricultural practice in Punjab, involves cultivating a single crop. Here, wheat and paddy comprise about 84.6% of the total area planted, thereby reducing space for other crops like pulses, maize, bajra, oilseeds cotton, etc.
Risks Associated with Monoculture
The continual cultivation of the same crops makes the land vulnerable to pest infestations and diseases. Crop and genetic diversity usually make it harder for insects and pathogens to break through a plant’s resistance. Continuous cultivation of wheat and paddy without crop rotation leads to soil nutrient depletion and growing dependence on chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
Wheat Versus Paddy Farming
Different characteristics distinguish wheat and paddy. Wheat suits Punjab’s soil and agro climatic conditions. As a cool-season crop, it thrives in the northern regions where temperatures stay within the early-thirty degrees Celsius range until March. This crop also contributes significantly to India’s national food security.
On the other hand, paddy requires massive amounts of water, with about 30 irrigations or more given compared to wheat’s five times. This cultivation practice has resulted in Punjab’s groundwater table decreasing by 0.5 meters per annum on an average.
Prolonged Duration of Paddy Cultivation
Farmers are often inclined to cultivate long-duration, water-intensive varieties like Pusa-44 due to their high yield but prolonged growth period. This extended period necessitates transplanting by mid-May (peak Summer), allowing harvesting from October and the timely planting of the subsequent wheat crop. However, this also translates to high water requirements.
Government Initiative: Punjab Preservation of Subsoil Water Act, 2009
The government passed the Punjab Preservation of Subsoil Water Act in 2009 to conserve groundwater. It prohibited any nursery-sowing and transplanting of paddy before May 15 and June 15 respectively.
Drawbacks of the Punjab Preservation of Subsoil Water Act, 2009
The Act led to complications, as it pushed harvesting to late October, consequently narrowing the time frame for sowing wheat before the November 15 deadline. The predicament left farmers no choice but to burn the leftover paddy stubble, indirectly causing air pollution in Delhi, thus demonstrating the unintended correlation between groundwater conservation in Punjab and air pollution in Delhi.
A Shift in Farming Practices: The Way Forward
The proposed alternative is to reduce wheat acreage and encourage cultivation of alternate crops like coarse grains. This would lead to crop diversification, enhancing soil resilience and adding nutritional benefits for the local population. Shifting paddy cultivation to eastern and southern states, planting shorter-duration varieties of paddy that mature early without affecting production, metering electricity and direct seeding of paddy could further address the issues of monoculture and depleting groundwater.
Last Modified: February 9, 2024