Suraj Pal is a 37-year-old farmer from Rampur, an otherwise inaccessible hamlet in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh. He has four children. The eldest of child is only 13 years old. Suraj alone earns to feed the whole family.
A year ago, he grew cabbage on his three-acre land, but due to severe water scarcity he was only able to cultivate one cropping during the year. With limited irrigation facilities available, Suraj’s farm only fetched him about US$700.
“I had no dearth of land, of quality seeds, and of fertilizers, but it was the shortage of water that spoiled my livelihood,” he told LiCAS News.
He said the late arrival of the monsoon season and the limited supply of water from government-run irrigation facilities compelled him to stop farming.
“I was pushing my family toward the brink of starvation,” said Suraj.
He was not alone in his predicament. His neighbors in the farming community are started to leave farming as fields run dry.
Manoj Bapu lives about a mile away from Suraj’s Home. He too has a four-acre land that he planted with Brinjal.
He said the water supply was too small that his land turned barren in the middle of the sowing season.
“I cannot blame the government for everything. I know there is a water shortage in the entire region. The farmers are craving water everywhere. But the losses were huge to bear,” said Bapu.
He said he was expecting a harvest worth about US$1,200 last year but was not not even able to get half of the amount.
“The reason was simple. The saplings couldn’t get enough water. They turned into dry twigs, leaving my hopes of a profitable harvest in doldrums,” said Bapu.
Government estimates show that 72 of the 75 districts of the state of Uttar Pradesh recorded “below normal” rainfall this year.
The India Meteorological Department said that in 59 of the 75 districts, rainfall was “very low.” These districts experienced “significant deficiency,” or less than 60 percent of the recommended amount of precipitation.
“Even the main and major districts of Uttar Pradesh like Meerut or Allahabad got lesser water supplies for farming,” said Suraj.
“How could we expect that this far-off and inaccessible area of ours would get government help?” he said.
“Farming is becoming an uneasy affair and so is sustaining the family and providing kids a good life,” added the farmer.
Upon learning of the farmers’ situation, the social service arm of the local Catholic church visited the area and looked into the water shortage situation.
They brought in experts who studied the possibility of harvesting and reusing waste water to irrigate the farms. The experts recommended building an artificial pond where water can be stored, enabling farmers to grow crops or vegetables on little plots of land.
The farmers, including Suraj, Ram Das, and Bapu, dug a pit and carved channels to fill the pit with wastewater.
“I am now able to cultivate at least three crops a year. I now grow cabbage, cauliflower, and Brinjal,” said Suraj. “This was earlier impossible. God’s help truly arrived on time,” he said.
