Canal water revives parched fields in 3 districts of Punjab

Patiala- For years, villagers have battled the relentless depletion of groundwater, the escalating costs of maintaining tubewells and the harsh realities of a receding water table. While in Patiala and Fatehgarh Sahib districts, canal water irrigation has resumed after 40 years, it has arrived for the first time at a village of Amargarh town in Malerkotla.Manjeet Singh, a 35-year-old resident of Ghujerheri village, is excitedly walking in the drain full of water, irrigating his 12 acres.

“Since my childhood, we have been irrigating the fields through tubewells. Over the years, the water started depleting. The officials, especially Ziledar of the Irrigation Department Tejpal Singh, were quick to help. With their support, we cleared the encroached land and carved out a drain. Previously, nearly 50 tubewells irrigated over 200 acres, but now, we use canal water,” said Manjeet Singh.

As per the official record, currently there are 13.94 lakh tubewells across the state pumping out gallons of water during the paddy transplanting season. However, things have changed for the better in the villages of Gowara and Raipur, where underground pipes have replaced around 350 tubewells.