Punjab is one of the most important states in India. The word Punjab means ‘The land of the five rivers’. But the Punjab of today is not the same as it was twenty-five years ago. Now it is a land that is losing its water reserves. Now it has only three rivers, which do not meet the growing needs for water on earth. The scarcity of water has created a serious problem in the state. The problem is not only the drop in the groundwater level, but also the amount of rainfall that decreases each year. While traveling on the roads of Punjab, you will notice the dried up ponds, rivers and canals.
Punjab, which became prosperous with record rice production in the past, is now facing the worst water shortage situation. Rice cultivation has left Punjab without water. Farmers plant rice in the hope of generating a good income. But the hard work is ruined when they fail to provide the necessary amount of water to the crops. Neither the rivers help the farmers nor the rains nor the tube wells. As a result, crops fail and all hopes are dashed. The loan with a high interest rate keeps the farmer in great debt. Finding no other way to repay the loans, the farmers drink alcohol and even commit suicide.
The idea of growing cotton crops as an alternative to growing rice has suffered the same fate. In this case, the problem is not the scarcity of water but the pests that damage the cotton crops. Pests are hard nuts to crack. They cannot be easily killed with pesticides and pests continue to destroy cotton crops. Government agencies do not help. If the problem continues, one day you will see the people of Punjab buying these goods from other states and paying a high price with interstate taxes.
What is the solution to this problem?
One way is to go back to conventional crops like corn, wheat, chickpeas, mustard, etc. The other way is to grow those crops that are directly related to daily consumption, such as fuel needs in transportation. Some farmers are already growing Jojoa, a plant that produces a diesel like oil from its fruit. To solve energy needs like electricity, farmers can easily switch to solar power. To get rid of pests of all kinds, the best idea is to adopt biological means in agriculture. In this case there is a great challenge to change the minds of ordinary people. It is very difficult to make a farmer befriend a snake, who thinks he is an enemy. You have to do a lot of work and still there is no guarantee of success. The snakes actually kill the rats, which consume at least 5% of the Wheat. This is an example of how animals help man. Owls also eat rats. But the man kills owls in the name of bad omens. Similar people hate bats. Bats are associated with evil and people believe that they are bloodsuckers. But few people are aware of the fact that a single bat consumes up to 600 mosquitoes in a day. Similarly, a small insect of the beetle family popularly called ladybug feeds voraciously on aphids, which suck the juice of fruit plants through the soft parts such as leaves and new shoots.
But in ignorance we use pesticides and chemicals to kill each insect without knowing if it is useful or harmful to humans and plants. Now we don’t see flocks of sparrows in or around our houses. There are not many ravens. The kites and the vultures are gone. Owls large and small have been killed. There are no huge, tall trees to support wild birds. Burning rice waste in the fields kills useful fungi good for crops. Millions of insects die or are chased away from fields as a result, we see them in tube lights and bulbs finding a safe haven.
The root of all problems is in food. In fact, the use of chemicals such as pesticides has contaminated the entire food chain. For example, we use chemical sprays to kill pests on plants. Affected plants are consumed by cows as fodder. The quality of the milk is affected. People consume the affected milk. This contaminated milk affects people’s health. Every day we hear about new diseases appearing in one form or another.
Let us make Punjab a proud state again. Nothing is impossible if people are determined. Let’s make a promise to avoid something that is not so difficult. First of all, let’s stop using plastic bags. Let’s go back to the use of conventional media in everyday life. Let’s start using fire ashes in cleaning cookware. Let’s stop using chemical cleaners. Let’s stop using aluminum utensils for cooking and use iron utensils instead. The next time you see an owl, a bat, a snake, a spider and a tall old tree, don’t forget to thank God because it may be the last one standing. It is possible, it is possible that you will not have the opportunity to see it again. Think seriously! About the green Punjab of the past. When milk flowed in its rivers and not pollution. When Punjabi wrestlers were world champions. When the air was as pure as a breath of paradise and there was no smoke or lung disease. When the water overflowed the banks of the town’s canals. When people could freely drink from the rivers and canals.
Let the owls return, let the vultures and kites return. Let the bats fly freely and let the snakes hide in the holes. When all this passes, there will be an end to all the confusion and risk to our Mother Nature and the environment. Let us all pray to god, that the lost glory of my Punjab be restored and smiles return to the faces of all Punjabi brothers so that they happily keep up with global needs and contribute to world affairs in a positive way. healthy and creative. It is time to switch to them forever or else we will be left behind and lose out on food exports. People are now more health conscious. Our rice does not compete with world standards with too much chemical content. The need is to grow organic food and eating healthy and eating healthy should be our bike.