The overlooked ‘environmental backstory’ behind the farmer protests

By Vivek Saini 

The fertile plains of Punjab and Haryana have long been known as India’s breadbasket, feeding millions with their bountiful harvests of rice and wheat. However, beneath this apparent success lies a hidden cost. The intensive cultivation of these water-intensive crops has pushed the region to a tipping point, depleting groundwater reserves and contributing to environmental degradation. This, in turn, has created a “nexus of distress” where farmers grapple with economic hardship and ecological anxieties. The late 1960s ushered in the green revolution, transforming India’s rural landscape with high-yielding varieties of rice and wheat. While this surge in food production brought economic prosperity, the shift to water-intensive crops led to a dangerous decline in groundwater levels. Today, the repercussions resonate in the form of water-stressed regions, depleted soil, and the annual ritual of burning paddy stubble, contributing to the toxic air that blankets North India.

As the fields witness these challenges, farmers stand at the nexus of distress, caught between the imperative to secure remunerative prices for their produce and the need for sustainable agricultural practices. This article discusses the intricate web of issues surrounding the environmental impact of staple crops, the demand for legal guarantees of minimum support prices, the challenges of crop diversification, and the global echoes of discontent reverberating through farmer protests worldwide.

Impact of Rice and Wheat Cultivation on the Environment

In the late 1960s, a significant surge in India’s food production occurred, with farmers in Punjab and Haryana cultivating high-yielding varieties of rice and wheat, known as the green revolution. Despite boosting agricultural productivity and bringing economic prosperity, the shift to water-intensive crops led to a decline in groundwater levels. Between 2004 and 2017, water-stressed areas in Haryana rose from 63% to 80%, and in Punjab, 82% to 84%.

Addressing the crisis involves transitioning to less water-dependent crops, prompting the Punjab and Haryana governments to offer price support for alternative crops. However, data from the Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board reveals challenges, such as the 2023 sale of 96.5% of moong below the declared MSP. Some states have introduced compensatory schemes, like Haryana’s Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana, but these fall short of ensuring farmers receive the declared minimum support price. In 2023, sunflower farmers faced a similar predicament, prompting interim compensation from the government.

Despite acknowledging higher prices for wheat and paddy, farmer leaders highlight the substantial expenses associated with pesticides and electricity for water pumping in cultivating these crops.

Why Farmers Demand Legal Guarantee of MSP

Crop diversification has the potential to mitigate issues arising from the extensive cultivation of wheat and rice; however, the absence of government support makes it a precarious option. The central demand driving the protests at the Punjab and Haryana border is the farmers’ call for a legal assurance of the minimum support prices declared annually by the government but not consistently honoured.

The Minimum Support Price (MSP) system is intended to serve as a safety net, involving direct government purchase of crops from farmers if market prices fall below the set minimum. Despite the central government announcing MSP for 22 crops, it routinely procures only rice and wheat for its food security programs. Punjab and Haryana contribute significantly to this procurement, accounting for nearly 74% of wheat and 28% of paddy purchased in the 2022-’23 period.

However, the extensive cultivation of rice and wheat in these states has led to depleted soil and water tables. Additionally, farmers from Punjab and Haryana face criticism for contributing to air pollution each winter when they burn harvested rice stubble to prepare their fields swiftly for the upcoming wheat crop.

Challenges of Crop Diversification: Balancing Profit and Environmental Benefits 

Farmers prioritize earning remunerative prices for their produce, but crop diversification can bring additional benefits. Annually, in October, the burning of paddy stubble by farmers in Punjab and Haryana contributes to toxic air across North India. While state governments offer cash incentives to discourage burning, experts advocate a more sustainable approach—shifting to crops like PUSA 1509, a paddy variety with faster maturity and shorter stubble.

Despite its environmental advantages, farmers find it financially risky to cultivate PUSA 1509 as it lacks government procurement at MSP, unlike PUSA-44. Farmers argue that expanding MSP to eco-friendly paddy varieties would incentivize their adoption. Climate change intensifies environmental impacts on agriculture, with extreme weather events reducing yields and quality, leading to lower farm prices. For instance, in Haryana, a prolonged cold wave shrank mustard seed size, selling below MSP, while in Punjab, rain-damaged moong dal fetched prices below MSP from private buyers.

Echoes of Discontent: Parallels in Global Farmer Protests

The ongoing protests by Indian farmers resonate with similar expressions of discontent sweeping across the globe. While the details and nuances may differ, a common concern regarding economic hardship, environmental anxieties, and inadequate support systems binds these struggles together.

Farmers in the Netherlands and Germany have voiced concerns about low farmgate prices due to factors like global competition and trade agreements perceived as favoring large corporations and imports. Similar concerns regarding exploitation by mediators and the need for fairer market access are echoed by Indian farmers. Additionally, farmers in Brazil protested against rising fuel and fertilizer costs, mirroring the economic anxieties faced by their Indian counterparts. This highlights the shared struggle against increasing production costs and the need for government support to ensure financial viability.

The demonstrations in France were triggered, in part, by proposals to decrease agricultural fuel subsidies, a move that the government eventually reversed by the end of January. This reversal came after farmers in Dijon expressed their discontent by spraying manure on a local government building. The protests intensified on January 29, with hundreds of tractors obstructing key roads leading to the country’s capital. This event, widely termed the “siege of Paris” by numerous media outlets, marked an escalation in the scale and impact of the demonstrations.

The global nature of these farmer protests underscores the interconnectedness of challenges facing the agricultural sector. Addressing these issues effectively requires collaboration and knowledge sharing across borders. This could involve exchanging best practices for sustainable agriculture, water conservation, and farmer support implemented in different countries. Additionally, collaborative research on climate-resilient crops, innovative farming methods, and improved technologies could benefit all farmers globally. 

References:

1. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00219096231154239
2. https://emandikaran-pb.in/
3. https://ekharid.in/Home/BhavantarBharpaiiYojana
4. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=2003184
5. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1920200
6. https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1942780
7. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262873099_Variety_Pusa_Basmati_1509
8. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62335287
9. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/german-agriculture-minister-vows-no-more-concessions-farmers-demands-2024-01-05/
10. https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN2KT34D/
11. https://www.skynews.com.au/world-news/global-affairs/fed-up-french-farmers-spray-manure-on-government-buildings-in-protest/video/fcf827f4b2a763a1554856994962c6b8
12. https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-europe-68126373

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