Groundwater level plummeting rapidly in Punjab; experts, residents seek new govt’s attention

Mahesh Sharma

Malerkotla, June 11

As groundwater levels in many parts of the state are declining at concerning rates, the experts and people have urged the new government at the Centre to focus on resolving the issue that is threatening an essential supply of water for people, agriculture and ecosystems.

During his career of three decades in plumbing and boring services, Tehal Singh Dulman has witnessed journey from hand pump to submersible motor in domestic water supply and installation of monoblock pumps in wells to present situation where a submersible motor was installed at 180 ft deep in Sandaur block recently.

Dulman said the water table, that was available at arms depth according to his late father Sadhu Singh, was fluctuating at around 150 feet deep at localities situated near Sirhind Canal.

He said the trend, if allowed unchecked, was bound to deteriorate the groundwater availability to such an alarming situation from where it might not be possible to be retrieved even using present day technology. Exponential increase in use of groundwater for industrial and agricultural purposes was cited by experts as one of the major reasons behind the present situation.

“I have been in this profession for three decades, when a hand pump was installed at a depth of 50 ft as water was available at a depth of 30 ft. In agricultural field too, huge submersible motors have replaced monoblock motors which were installed in wells dug near electric motor rooms,” Dulman said, claiming that the water level had receded alarming level of 140-150 ft deep in Sandaur, Manki, Jhuner, Dhaler, Kuradchhapa and Mehal Kalan belts.

The people were upset that the issue did not feature in the priority list of the candidates who contested the recent concluded Lok Sabha election.

Retired police inspector Satwinder Singh Bajwa said the situation at his native Badesha village and Mundian Kalan village had deteriorated to an extent where villagers had to loiter from one house to another for borrowing water for daily needs, as the public supply was not available for over three months.

Harjinder Singh Samra, a former sarpanch of Chhanna, said that water supply system in his village was installed by digging 525 ft deep three years ago, and now it needs further digging.

Referring to studies conducted by Ludhiana-based Punjab Agriculture University, Samra said the period of two decades between 1998 and 2018 had witnessed plummeting of groundwater level by 98 ft, but the successive governments had failed to check it. Samra urged the newly constituted government at the Centre to take notice of studies conducted by the Central Ground Water Board that had stated that the groundwater level could drop to 1,000 ft by 2039.

Acknowledging that the Malwa region had already been declared a dark zone due to plummeting groundwater level in the past decades, Punjab State Tubewell Corporation executive engineer Buta Singh said efforts were being made to resolve the issue by persuading cultivators to make optimum use of canal water.

Observations further revealed that on an average a submersible installed at a domestic unit requires further deepening by around 20 ft every third year and agricultural equipment needs similar deepening of the bore every fifth year, thus imposing a massive financial burden on the unit owner.

According to an estimate, groundwater accounts for around 75 per cent of irrigation needs, while canal water 25 per cent. The administration was now planning to ensure that 35 per cent of irrigational needs were met by canal water. Kotla Minor, Kanganwal Feeder and Rohira feeder were reportedly strengthened for making the canal water reach farthest areas of the Malwa region.

Accounts for 75% of irrigation need

According to an estimate, groundwater accounts for around 75 per cent of irrigation needs, while canal water 25 per cent. The administration was now planning to ensure that 35 per cent of irrigational needs were met by canal water. Kotla Minor, Kanganwal Feeder and Rohira feeder were reportedly strengthened for making the canal water reach farthest areas of the Malwa region.