Evolution of agricultural water use in India: a systems approach
Abstract
Groundwater plays an important role in improving the resilience of agriculture practices by mitigating the risk associated with unreliable and seasonal rainfalls. This has been an important driver in satisfying the food demand for an ever increasing population across the world. However, the inability to manage this large but limited freshwater reserve has resulted in a sharp decline in water table levels, with India being at the forefront of this problem. This study looks at the temporal trajectory of groundwater extraction in India over a 40 year time span during which well irrigation has evolved to become a central component of agriculture there. Using a systems approach, we identify the regional hot-spots of unsustainable groundwater extraction and then analyze its relationship with the environmental, economic and social components of the region. Early results indicate that the state of Punjab has been overexploiting its groundwater resources since the early 1980's with a 22% jump in groundwater extraction after the introduction of a free electricity policy, with a concomitant reduction in the number of marginal farmers by 36%. This is in contrast with the state of Tamil Nadu, in which groundwater extraction is less severe, but the number of marginal farmers has increased.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016AGUFMGC43C1181H
- Keywords:
-
- 0402 Agricultural systems;
- BIOGEOSCIENCESDE: 1630 Impacts of global change;
- GLOBAL CHANGEDE: 1880 Water management;
- HYDROLOGYDE: 6309 Decision making under uncertainty;
- POLICY SCIENCES