Water use

The cultivation of primarily wheat and paddy in Punjab is increasingly depleting groundwater supplies in the region, and thus crop diversification is an important path to reducing water use. Here, archaeological research carried out by FP4 researchers Dr Cameron Petrie and Dr Adam Green which demonstrates the relevance of ancient agricultural practices to a modern water shortage is put in conversation with policy targets proposed by FP4 researchers Dr Shruti Bhogal and Dr Kamal Vatta to promote crop diversification in Punjab.

Amidst the ongoing debate about mismatched demand and supply of water for farm use, alongside escalating cost of irrigation in rural Punjab, disused village ponds – and surface water in general – are now being promoted as a cost-effective incremental water source. Here, Dr Shruti Bhogal from Flagship Project 4 , based at the Centres for International Projects Trust, New Delhi, discusses the importance of reviving these ponds as a sustainable water source for the future.

On Saturday 19 October, as part of Cambridge University’s Festival of Ideas, three TIGR2ESS researchers from very different fields got together to share how past, present and future technology could provide solutions to India’s water crisis.