The floods this year in Punjab have been devastating, with the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej rivers depositing huge amounts of sand onto fields. Farmers in the state are now in despair regarding the forthcoming Rabi (winter) cropping season.
Down To Earth (DTE) toured the state, witnessing and recording the destruction caused and listening to farmers whose lives seem to have turned upside down.
In Dineke village of Ferozepur, Ajit Singh’s six-acre field was swallowed by the Sutlej. He lives two kilometers from the river, near the Dhussi Bund (embankment). His fields are now filled with eight feet of sand. At first glance, thousands of acres of farmland look like a small desert. Singh’s paddy and sugarcane fields have been completely destroyed by the sand. After the 2023 flood, Singh had spent Rs 3.5-4 lakh, preparing the fields. This time, the devastation has been so complete, he cannot think of any option.
To clear the sand and create a path between his house and fields, Singh spent Rs 5,000 of his own money to hire an earth mover. He said, “How can any farmer remove so much sand? Nothing can be done here for the time being.”
Satpal Singh, also from Dineke, raised questions about the Harike Barrage. He said in 1965, before building a barrage toward Tarn Taran, about 20 villages were relocated with compensation. “No farmer in our area was compensated. If compensation is given, then we should not be farming near the river. We should have received enough compensation to buy a little farmland elsewhere. Now, all we see here is sand. Where will farmers get money from?”
He added, “Removing sand from these fields would require crores of rupees. Who will help us?”
In Ghuram village of Ferozepur, Ranjit Kaur showed her nearly three acres of ruined fields. Her fields do not have sand but are covered with 2-3 feet of muddy silt. Bore wells are submerged in the silt. Her maize and paddy crops have been destroyed. Farmers are coping with the disaster through help from relatives and outsiders. Government assistance exists only in announcements, she said.
In Harike Colony, Tarn Taran, Gurpreet Singh had leased 40 acres of land for farming. His entire crop has yellowed and rotted. Showing the fields, he said the announced compensation of at least Rs 20,000 should reach farmers as soon as possible.
Gurpreet’s six animals were swept away in this flood. Now, he has no livestock. The cowshed is deserted, and the fodder kept inside is rotting. The irony is that where there is fodder, there are no animals, and where animals survived, there is no fodder.
DTE also visited the most affected Mahatmanagar village and Ram Singh Bhaini village in Fazilka. The main road to the villages has been cut off due to floods. The villages are covered with 2-3 feet of silt. The flood in the Sutlej damaged the entire crops of the village residents, mainly paddy (parmal varieties).
Charanjit Singh warned that while the visible damage is alarming, the biggest concern is the upcoming season. He says, “We will not be able to sow wheat, and we will not get any compensation for this loss.”
People of Mahatmanagar village said they have not yet received ownership rights over their lands. In 2007, people paid lakhs of rupees as revenue for their fields, but they still cannot assert their rights. Because of this, even though they are affected by the disaster, they are not counted among the victims.
In Ram Singh Bhaini village, Gurmeet Singh said in a sorrowful voice, “We belong neither to Pakistan nor to India anymore.” Regarding wheat sowing, he said only about 30 per cent of wheat sowing will be possible in his area this time.
Punjab’s farmers are trapped in multiple layers of problems. As the floodwaters recede, stories of sorrow are emerging.
Sukhdev Singh has come with a tractor to dump fodder and wheat kept at his house near Kot Gurbaksh village in Ajnala tehsil (subdistrict), Amritsar, on the roadside. Both the grains and fodder have rotted badly, emitting a foul smell.
Sukhdev said he had prepared 38 acres of Basmati paddy, including varieties like Pusa 1718, Pusa 110, and Pusa 1692. Additionally, he had 18 kilograms of sugarcane crops. All of it has been destroyed. He recalled that on the morning of August 25-26, at 7 am, floodwaters swept 10 corpses into his village, some of whom were soldiers and others village residents.
He added that the grains stored at home for storage also rotted in the floodwaters. Hundreds of acres of cauliflower crops were destroyed in the village.
Singh said, “There is no hope for farming here until the next Kharif season. Migrant labourers from outside and other states usually visit the village, but this time they will not be able to come.”
Farmer Tej Pratap Singh said his native Dera Baba Nanak tehsil of Gurdaspur district provides some of the largest quantities of cauliflower. However, the floods have destroyed the crop.
The Ravi surged and a breach in the barrage near the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor caused water to reach up to the Pakistan border. Barrage repair work is currently underway. Fields are still filled with water on all sides. People are moving around with their animals looking for fodder. Tej Pratap said maize fodder pellets are being made to help affected farmers. The shortage of fodder is significant.
Tej Pratap Singh showed paddy spikes and said, “These grains have become worthless. There is no value left in them.”