Sodic soil, poor drainage render 5.27 lakh acres uncultivable: Selja

Sirsa MP Kumari Selja has raised alarm over a growing agricultural crisis in Haryana, claiming that more than 5.27 lakh acres of farmland in 13 districts are turning barren due to sodic soil and poor drainage.

She said around 721 villages are affected, forcing many once-prosperous farmers to work as labourers or lease land from others.

“The problem, which began in the 1970s, has only worsened due to rising soil salinity and seepage. The floods of 1995 further aggravated waterlogging, devastating cultivable land,” Selja said on Tuesday.

The Congress MP criticised the state government for its failure to implement timely drainage solutions. “If corrective measures had been taken on time, large tracts of land could have been saved,” she said, pointing out that districts such as Rohtak, Jhajjar, Hisar and Sonepat are among the worst-hit.

Selja also drew attention to the Hisar-Ghaggar drain project, which was designed to reduce seepage. “The drain was never connected to the Ghaggar as planned. Instead of solving the issue, it has damaged crops further,” she said.

Warning of serious consequences, Selja said: “With cultivable land already shrinking in the state, urgent intervention is needed to reclaim the affected areas and save farmers from further distress.”