The Green Revolution (the use of high-yielding varieties of crops, pesticides and fertilizers), the marriage between science
and farming, has failed. When the Green Revolution was launched, sustainability was not an issue - he only issue was to raise production by pumping more and more inputs. Though agricultural production has continued to rise, the yield per hectare has declined.
The hybrid varieties were water-thirsty and chemical-intensive. MS Swaminathan, the father of the Green Revolution, was aware of the dangers involved. Intensive
cultivation of land without conservation of soil fertility would lead to the springing up of deserts, he said. Irrigation without proper drainage would result in soils getting alkaline or saline, he said. Indiscriminate use of pesticides could cause adverse changes in the biological balance through toxic residues present in the grains, he said. Unscientific tapping of water will lead to exhaustion of this resource,he said. His words have proved to be prophetic.
India expanded her agriculture by depleting groundwater reserves. Besides, the indiscriminate use of chemicals robbed the soil of its nutrients, poisoned the groundwater and contaminated crops. Now our soil is affected and the cost of production has
increased, but there is not much the farmers can do about it. Over extraction of water has led to other problems as well - some areas were hit by water scarcity while others suffered from water logging problems. As a result of unsustainable agricultural policies, the water table has gone down in many districts by more than four meters.
While the production of rice and wheat increased, the area under pulses declined. Ironically, main reason for encouraging rice cultivation in Punjab was to get rid of water logging. But with the new varieties, the water requirement increased. In turn, that leads to the digging of more and more tube wells, thus further aggravating the problem.
The fertile soil is also turning barren. The organic carbon content of soils has also gone down. Many farmers lament that their only source of income has been lost. Many of the farmers are heavily in debt. Social problems have followed the indebtedness. It is a matter of concern that a number of suicides have also taken place, indicating the gravity of the problem.
To stick with the status quo will be nothing short of inviting environmental and social disaster. We must extend cultivation outside Haryana and Punjab, especially into the Gangetic plains and the Brahmaputra valley. There should not be one policy for the entire country, but different policies based on the ecological needs of the respective areas. Further, the government policies for fertilizers, water and power should be sustainable in the long-term. To undo the damage done during the last 30 years, the government needs to reduce the area under rice cultivation and encourage production of leguminous crops. In other words, adequate incentives to grow other crops must be provided.