The Tail-End Canal Block
Panchayat samiti officials in a Nagaur block are revising the crop plan for 2024–25. The block has average rainfall of 380 mm, mostly in July–September; soils are sandy loam to black in the lower belt; the Indira Gandhi Canal reaches only the tail-end of three villages, and canal supply is uncertain after December. Groundwater in the block has fallen from 18 m in 2005 to 35 m in 2023, about 1.2 m a year. Farmers currently grow wheat and mustard with diesel pumps; some have begun cotton, which needs more water. A state scheme offers 50% subsidy for sprinklers and 60% for drip, but only if the panchayat prepares a water budget. The block has 4,200 ha net sown, 62% rain-fed. Officials must recommend a cropping pattern and a groundwater rule that are politically acceptable to both canal and rain-fed farmers.
1. Recommend a cropping pattern for the tail-end canal villages and the rain-fed area, and justify it with climate, soil and water conditions.
Read the worked answer
For tail-end canal villages: keep wheat and mustard only where canal water is assured, and shift part of the area to chickpea, barley or short-duration mustard with one or two irrigations; avoid cotton because it needs 6–8 irrigations and a long season. For rain-fed sandy loam: grow bajra, moth bean, guar and sesame in kharif; do not expand cotton. Justification: 380 mm rainfall and high evaporation mean unirrigated cotton will fail; black soil in the lower belt retains moisture but cannot cover a water-heavy crop. The plan should match water availability, not market price alone.
2. How should officials use the water budget and the drip/sprinkler subsidy to slow groundwater decline?
Read the worked answer
Prepare a water budget: recharge from rainfall and canal seepage versus extraction by all wells. Use the 60% drip subsidy for orchards and vegetables near wells, and the 50% sprinkler subsidy for wheat and mustard. Set a groundwater rule: no new diesel tubewells in the dark block; limit irrigation hours; require a panchayat permit for new wells; rotate canal water among tail-end villages. Make the subsidy conditional on the water budget and on a signed farmer agreement, so farmers see the link between the subsidy and reduced extraction. This is more acceptable than a sudden ban because it lowers costs while cutting demand.
3. Explain why expanding cotton would be risky in this block.
Read the worked answer
Cotton needs more water than the block has, especially at the tail-end where canal supply is uncertain after December. It needs timely irrigation at flowering, and diesel pumps would deepen the groundwater decline. If cotton fails, farmers lose input costs and may borrow at high interest. The market price may look attractive, but the crop plan must respect the water balance. A better choice is a short-duration, low-water crop. Political acceptability should come from offering drip or sprinkler subsidy and a guaranteed canal rotation, not from promising a crop the water cannot support.