'Strengthen Upper Bari canal, its distributaries'

Amritsar, October 31

In pursuance of their demand for availability of canal water for irrigation, a delegation of farmers led by Jamhoori Kisan Sabha met Irrigation Department Principal Secretary Krishan Kumar on Monday and demanded strengthening of the Uppar Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) and its distributaries.

The delegation informed the Principal Secretary that over 15 lakh tubewells in the state were pumping out groundwater to irrigate nearly 30 lakh hectares of land. It stated that only 8.5 lakh hectare of land was being irrigated with canal water.

“Of the total agriculture land, only 27 per cent is being irrigated with canal water which is very poor for a state known for its abundant river waters,” said Jamhoori Kisan Sabha president Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala.

He added that till 1972, a total of 43 per cent of agricultural land was fed by river waters.

Ajnala complained that due to collapse of the canal irrigation system, the farmers got dependent on groundwater. “At this rate, the ground reserve would be exhausted in next two decades and it would impact the state and its people adversely,” said Ajnala.

The delegation demanded from the state government to construct new canals and their distributaries so that canal water reaches each and every field. It also highlighted the issue of disposal of waste water of factories and industrial units in the UBDC and its distributaries.