{"id":60111792,"date":"2025-12-02T18:26:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T18:26:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/?p=60111792"},"modified":"2025-12-04T09:35:18","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T09:35:18","slug":"climate-disasters-deepen-food-insecurity-in-the-punjab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/climate\/climate-disasters-deepen-food-insecurity-in-the-punjab\/","title":{"rendered":"Climate disasters deepen food insecurity in the Punjab region"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Sitting in his now ruined fields, Gurpreet Singh recalls how his five-year-old daughter searched for cheap toys at a Diwali fair in October, knowing her father could not afford much this festival season. \u201cWhen I tried to buy her a toy from the festival fair, she refused. She knew there were difficult times ahead,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The child has faced circumstances far beyond anyone her age should have. The floods that wreaked havoc on the Punjab region in India and Pakistan in August submerged her family\u2019s farm for over a month, destroying an entire season\u2019s worth of crops and killing some of their livestock. Her only cow was not spared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Singh is the elected head of four villages in the Kapurthala district of Punjab state in India. He lost the rice crop on his 2.6-hectare farm in the district\u2019s Sultanpur Lodhi <em>tehsil <\/em>(local administrative division), which fed his family of eight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Several hundred kilometres away, in the neighbouring Punjab province in Pakistan, 58-year-old Tariq Mahmood recalls how the floodwaters submerged his farmland, rice and sugarcane crops just as they were ready for harvesting. \u201cWe could only save 30% of our sugarcane\u201d after returning to the village, he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mahmood\u2019s land is just 500 metres from the Sutlej River in the city of Chishtian, Bahawalnagar district, south-east Punjab<strong>. <\/strong>His 10-hectare farm<strong>,<\/strong> which he shares with his three brothers, will take at least six months to restore to a cultivable state, he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Punjab, the breadbasket for both India and Pakistan, has experienced several <a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2579729\/punjab-worst-hit-by-alarming-rise-in-climate-shocks\">climate shocks<\/a> in the last few years, including heatwaves and floods. But for India, the devastation this year has been reported as the <a href=\"https:\/\/india.mongabay.com\/2025\/09\/lives-homes-and-crops-lost-as-punjab-faces-the-worst-flood-in-decades\/\">worst<\/a> since the severe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ndtv.com\/india-news\/a-look-back-at-1988-floods-as-punjab-faces-its-worst-deluge-in-decades-9214529\">1988 floods<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This time, an estimated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.indiawaterportal.org\/faqs\/faq-on-punjab-floods-september-2025-what-you-need-to-know\">175,000 hectares<\/a> of agricultural land was washed away in India alone across all 23 districts in Punjab state, with at least <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederal.com\/category\/states\/north\/punjab\/punjab-flood-death-toll-rises-to-57-amid-drop-in-number-of-relief-camps-207250\">57<\/a> people dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Pakistan\u2019s Punjab, at least <a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2570109\/floods-claim-1006-lives-including-275-children\">304 people<\/a> have died from the rains and floods, according to the country\u2019s National Disaster Management Authority. The UN\u2019s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) <a href=\"https:\/\/reliefweb.int\/report\/pakistan\/pakistan-2025-monsoon-floods-support-plan-relief-and-early-recovery-october-2025-april-2026\">notes<\/a> that in the province, 1.12 million hectares of agricultural land were affected, or 9% of Punjab\u2019s total agricultural land. Over 214,000 hectares of rice and 122,000 hectares of cotton were inundated, James Robert Okoth, officer-in-charge of the FAO in the country, told Dialogue Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, as the region begins the process of rebuilding, farmers in Punjab lament the inadequate support given by their governments for recovery, leading to fears of food shortages in both countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-caused-the-severe-flooding\">What caused the severe flooding?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In India\u2019s Punjab, the floods this year were <a href=\"https:\/\/thewire.in\/environment\/dams-bhakra-nangal-sutlej-beas-ravi\">caused<\/a> by torrential rains and the rainwater being suddenly released from dams as a surge. \u201cFor days, we saw the waters in the canals swell, but the government did not do anything,\u201d says Gurpreet Singh. Then one day in mid-August, \u201cwe woke up to waterlogged farms\u201d, he notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Pakistan, intense <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2025\/9\/8\/intense-monsoon-rain-flooding-continue-to-engulf-pakistans-punjab\">monsoon rains<\/a>, exacerbated by impacts of climate change, swelled the Sutlej, Chenab and Ravi rivers in Punjab. This was compounded by India <a href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/en\/story\/2025\/09\/1165864\">releasing water<\/a> from its upstream dams, which it had informed Pakistan about. The combination of factors led to widespread destruction in a province where agricultural labour is a <a href=\"https:\/\/agripunjab.gov.pk\/our_strategy\">key source<\/a> of income for rural households.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Pakistan\u2019s latest <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.gov.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Agricultural_Census_Main_Findings_Report-1.pdf\">Agriculture Census<\/a>, published in August, Punjab province provides between 51-68% of wheat, rice, maize, cotton and sugarcane grown in the country, as well as 85% of fodder. The trade body Pakistan Business Forum <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/node\/2614768\/pakistan\">told<\/a> Arab News in September that its preliminary assessment of the damage in Punjab estimated crop losses of 60% of rice, 30% of sugarcane and 35% of cotton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>India\u2019s Punjab, meanwhile, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mofpi.gov.in\/sites\/default\/files\/KnowledgeCentre\/State%20Profile\/Punjab.pdf\">grows<\/a> 15% of the country\u2019s wheat and nearly 10% of its rice. Punjab accounted for over 40% of the country\u2019s basmati rice exports, the Indian Rice Exporter\u2019s Federation <a href=\"https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/asia\/india\/punjab-floods-rice-harvest-basmati-b2819240.html\">told<\/a> UK-newspaper the Independent. The floods led to 20-25% losses in the rice variety, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/d44151-025-00222-y\">reported<\/a> science journal Nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-article-image aligncenter block--article-image block--article-image--article\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><div class=\"block--article-image__column\"><div class=\"hide-expand block--article-image__image\"><img class=\"lazy\" data-src=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Harvesting-grain-in-Punjab-Pakistan_dbtravel_Alamy_CP7EXE.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Harvesting-grain-in-Punjab-Pakistan_dbtravel_Alamy_CP7EXE-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Harvesting-grain-in-Punjab-Pakistan_dbtravel_Alamy_CP7EXE-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Harvesting-grain-in-Punjab-Pakistan_dbtravel_Alamy_CP7EXE.jpg 2560w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 768px, (max-width: 1024px) 1024px, 2560px\" alt=\"A female farmer in traditional attire harvests wheat stalks in a field\"\/><\/div><div class=\"block--article-image__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--article-image__caption\">A woman harvesting wheat in Punjab province, Pakistan. The province provides nearly 58% of the country\u2019s wheat and the floods have led to 23% and 16% increases in the price of wheat and wheat flour respectively (Image: dbtravel \/ Alamy)<\/div><\/div><\/div><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Harvesting-grain-in-Punjab-Pakistan_dbtravel_Alamy_CP7EXE.jpg\"\/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2 MB\"\/><meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"1707\"\/><meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"2560\"\/><meta itemprop=\"author\"\/><meta itemprop=\"representativeOfPage\" content=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In Pakistan, food experts who spoke to Dialogue Earth say the floods\u2019 impacts will increase small landholders\u2019 reliance on credit as well as deepen debt cycles. The floods have meant reduced income and severe fodder shortages, says Okoth. \u201cMany are resorting to distress sales of livestock.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In October, inflation in the country rose from 5.6% to 6.24%, reported <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/amp\/1953003\">Dawn<\/a>, with 23% and 16% increases in the price of wheat and wheat flour respectively. The Ministry of Finance\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.finance.gov.pk\/economic\/economic_update_outlook_oct_2025.pdf\">Economic Outlook<\/a> for that month said inflation remained \u201caffected by food-supply pressures\u201d due to flood-related disruptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-post-disaster-recovery\">Post-disaster recovery<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Recovery in the Punjab region has been a struggle for those who relied on farming for their income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Normally, the summer harvest funds winter sowing. This year, however, that cycle collapsed with the floods destroying the harvest, leaving farmers with no liquidity to invest in the next season. \u201cEven those with modest landholding like us will be forced to take loans,\u201d says Mahmood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In late September, the Pakistani government announced that farmers who suffered losses would receive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pakistantoday.com.pk\/2025\/09\/23\/punjab-flood-victims-to-receive-compensation-through-cm-relief-card\/\">compensation<\/a> of around PKR 49,500 (USD 175) per hectare. But this \u201cbarely scratches the surface of the real cost of making land cultivable again\u201d, says Mian M. Umair Masood, who represents Kissan Ittehad, a farmers\u2019 association in Pakistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"wp-block-cd-related-news alignright block--related-news loading\" data-post-id=\"60098496\"><div class=\"block--related-news__image\"><\/div><div class=\"block--related-news__content\"><span class=\"block--related-news__heading\">Recommended<\/span><span class=\"block--related-news__title\"><\/span><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n\n<p>He explains that affected farmers must first clear the debris using machinery such as heavy-duty tractors, at a cost of PKR 20,000-25,000 (USD 71-88) per hectare. Subsequently, they have to buy fresh wheat seed, since most stored stocks of the seed were washed away in the floods. This costs another PKR 12,000-20,000 (USD 42-71) per hectare. \u201cThese restoration costs nearly consume the entire relief amount, leaving farmers with little to spend on irrigation water, fertilisers, herbicides \u2013 all of which will now be required in greater quantities, at inflationary rates,\u201d Masood adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, the Indian government has announced INR 49,400 (USD 553) per hectare in <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/city\/chandigarh\/cm-distributes-compensation-cheques-claims-highest-in-india\/articleshow\/124529354.cms\">compensation<\/a>, which Gurpreet Singh says is far too low to break even. This means he would receive USD 1,386 from the government. Singh was expecting to earn at least INR 2,390 (USD 27) per 100 kilograms of rice. Since each hectare of land produces at least 8,650 kgs, his total earnings would have been around INR 538,000 (USD 6,000) for the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He adds that farmers have no cash left to buy and clean seeds for impurities that impact yield, or hire workers to sow seeds for the next season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The crop losses may lead to food shortages in India as farmers now suffer from the post-flood challenges of silting and land erosion, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneycontrol.com\/news\/opinion\/why-a-flood-hit-punjab-is-bad-news-for-food-security-13524250.html\">wrote<\/a> Indra Shekhar Singh, an independent agri-policy analyst and former director of policy and outreach at the National Seed Association of India.<em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the aftermath of the floods, Okoth says the FAO recommends immediate cash transfers for farmers, as well as provision of seed, livestock feed and fertiliser \u201cto safeguard the Rabi [winter agricultural] season\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-both-punjabs-unprepared-for-disaster\">Both Punjabs unprepared for disaster<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Experts and local community leaders stress that before focusing on compensation or climate mitigation, the region\u2019s governments should focus on disaster preparedness and climate adaptation, which they say is lacking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThere have been floods every two years, but despite that, there is no readiness. Climate adaptation, despite huge losses [incurred], is still poor due to misgovernance,\u201d says Devinder Sharma, an Indian food and trade policy analyst.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In India, he says there should be an inquiry into the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.downtoearth.org.in\/natural-disasters\/punjab-floods-2025-ground-report-the-government-may-be-missing-from-the-scene-but-people-have-stepped-in-to-fill-to-void\">timing<\/a> of the release of water from the country\u2019s dams, \u201cand the fact that only <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2178969\">1,600 crore<\/a> rupees [INR 1.6 billion, or USD 178 million] has been released for the billions of dollars\u2019 worth of losses [faced by flood-affected families]\u201d in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"wp-block-cd-related-news alignright block--related-news loading\" data-post-id=\"60098036\"><div class=\"block--related-news__image\"><\/div><div class=\"block--related-news__content\"><span class=\"block--related-news__heading\">Recommended<\/span><span class=\"block--related-news__title\"><\/span><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n\n<p>In Pakistan\u2019s Punjab, Nighat Dad, a lawyer from the town of Ratta Matta in Jhang district, says the Chenab River has widened so much as a result of the recent floods that entire villages are now being forced to relocate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dad, who also runs the non-profit Digital Rights Foundation, says the Pakistani government took weeks to reach many affected communities, with private citizens and local organisations stepping up first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She assembled a team of volunteers leading <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DPuGFAakbT-\/\">relief efforts<\/a> in their area that worked to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DPuGFAakbT-\/\">provide rations<\/a>, as well as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/nighatdad\/reel\/DQGblQsDEGC\/\">raise funds<\/a> to rebuild homes and help farmers prepare for the next agricultural season in Jhang and neighbouring Chiniot district. Dad says such endeavours filled the gap between the state\u2019s response and private charity that should never have existed in the first place. \u201cThe government\u2019s response was reactive [rather] than preventive,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Looking to the future, Okoth says that for longer-term resilience, the Pakistani government should invest in disaster-risk financing mechanisms to protect farmers from future shocks. It should also strengthen early-warning systems and geospatial monitoring for preparedness, as well as ensure there is subsidised support for farmers to buy next year\u2019s inputs for the monsoon planting season, such as seeds, fertiliser and machinery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sharma says the governments must document the impacts faced by disaster-hit regions and share that data with experts and farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>They should also begin treating such calamities as national disasters rather than isolated events, he adds. Categorising these events as disasters \u201cwill help the governments to ensure a proactive and long-term approach to disaster management, rather than a reactive and post-event response\u201d, says Sharma.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Following devastating floods that destroyed crops in the breadbasket region of India and Pakistan, food insecurity continues to loom large<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20001042,"featured_media":60111842,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[761,763],"tags":[519,20000192,546],"hashtags":[],"country":[20000111,20000112],"class_list":["post-60111792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","category-food","tag-climate-impacts","tag-disasters","tag-food-security","country-india","country-pakistan"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized 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Punjab state of India is reeling under its worst floods in decades, with most of it s districts officially declared disaster zones. Relentless rains combined with dam overflows have submerged more than 1,200 villages, drowning vast stretches of farmland. 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