Farmers’ coping strategies: Flood and erosion-hit families of Lakhimpur and Dhemaji grow water resilient Bau rice and new crop varieties to sustain

The Magh Bihu, the post-harvest festival celebrated across Assam in mid-January every year now also says a lot about the coping mechanism of farmers to adopt changing climatic condition. With the changes of time the varieties of rice, cultivated and harvested by farmers, have been changing. Most of the conventional rice varieties had been gradually abandoned to cultivate for low crop yields and frequent flooding in farmlands during monsoon, and therefore, the farmers of low-lying areas have chosen to grow new crop varieties and water resilient varieties of bau (deep water rice).

In recent years, the behavioral changes of the north bank tributaries of the mighty Brahmaputra could be noticeably seen, particularly in the districts of Dhemaji and Lakhimpur of Assam. Originating in the hills of Arunachal Pradesh about fifty rivers of different sizes are flowing in through the plains of these two districts and end up in the Brahmaputra.

Photo - Monoj Gogoi

In the past two decades a lot of changes have occurred in the geomorphology of these rivers which has severely been affecting the farmers and the riverine communities. The weather has been rapidly changing due to natural and anthropogenic causes so the rivers. These rivers are now creating floods more frequently and intensity of floods erosions are increasing too. Local people and officials of agriculture department and other concerned authorities of these two districts too notice that submergence areas by flood water have been gradually increasing and for survival people think for alternative crops varieties.

The farmers, who grow paddy as kharif crops in the low-lying areas have been trying to resort to alternative varieties of rice which can sustain in moderate to catastrophic floods. The varieties of bau rice – amana, kakuwa etc are resilient to water and some other new varieties too introduce in the region by farmers.

Arpana Das, a woman from Rangajan village in the Dhemaji district, who was reaping paddy in her field in the last harvesting season told, “You will see only bau rice cultivation in the entire field, no other varieties. People grow only bau here.” When asked, she said that in recent years they faced consecutive floods, caused by the inflated water of the Na-nadi river, in their area and in intensity, frequency and longevity the floods were unprecedented. She mentioned, “Only bau rice cultivation is possible here, nothing else. All the people in our village and people from adjacent villages now cultivate only bau.” A students’ leader now turned politician Dr Hari Kanta Das and his father said that it was really heartening that some rice varieties were disappearing due to the changes in weather and behavioral changes in the rivers. People were trying to adapt with the changes in climate.

Photo - Monoj Gogoi

Dilip Das, a resident of Bhebeli under Gogamukh revenue circle in Dhemaji district said the people noticed changes in the weather – heavy rainfall in a short duration in monsoon, high pre- monsoon rainfall, almost zero precipitation in the winter, and catastrophic floods even in the month of September. He added these types of unusual incidents were rare in the past. The climate change had been affecting the normal lifestyles of the rural poor. Many youths from the flood affected villages of Lakhimpur and Dhemaji had migrated to western and southern states of India, but now that has too had been hampered by the Covid-19 situation. Without remittance many families had been facing severe economic hardship, he said.

People in the rural area do not know the term ‘climate change’, but they feel that something is happening in the weather which changes their normal life. The flood and erosion affected people of Kadam and Bihpuria revenue circles had waged a war against the changing climate. Instead of producing the common varieties of rice, now they are introducing new and water-resistant rice varieties and also resorted to bau cultivation.

Kharif crops, once, were their primary source of livelihood but now they depend upon rabi crops – like cultivating various vegetables and growing mustard seeds etc. But family income does not improve. Ramchandra Hazarika, a village headman in the Dhunaguri area told that lives became impossible in the flood and erosion affected villages near the confluence of Subansiri and Brahmaputra. He added that the people in those areas needed lessons from experts whether from government agencies or Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to cope up with these kinds of heavy and frequent disasters. He also told, “We are very happy that an NGO, Peoples Action for Development (PAD) started to work in our areas addressing these basic issues and we are hopeful for a positive outcome and ready to cooperate the initiatives of PAD.

Photo - Monoj Gogoi

The farmlands, covered with bau cultivation, have been significantly increasing in these two districts due to the floods caused by erratic rainfalls in the region or Arunachal Pradesh or both. Erosion can also be termed as one of the major disasters in Assam, the causes of floods and erosion by these rivers cannot be fully attributed to climate change, but for sure, climate change becomes one of the major drivers of these disasters happening here.

The elements, other than the climate change, must be developmental activities like construction of roads, railways etc, unscientific flood control and erosion prevention structures – embankments, spurs, porcupines, bridges etc in undesired locations, lack of scientific and basin-wise study of the rivers, massive deforestation in the upstream of rivers, late repairing and construction of embankments, alleged rampant corruption in all the schemes for flood and erosion control measures, experience of local people are always ignored when any flood and erosion related policy is made etc.

It may be mentioned that in Dhemaji and Lakhimpur there are in numerous small rivulets which carry just ankle-deep water or zero discharge in winter can create devastating floods just for few hours, depending on weather of the area in monsoon season. Medium rivers such as Gai, Simen, Kumatiya, Jiadhal in Dhemaji and Ranganadi, Singora, Dikrong, Durpang etc in Lakhimpur bear almost same characteristics in the plains of Assam. These rivers are flashy, carry huge silts, often shift channels, widespread sandcasting and silt deposition in plains and agricultural lands, flows in multiple braided channels, deposit silts in their own courses and elevate riverbeds. These rivers flow to the Brahmaputra merging to a big tributary. The Subansiri, one of the largest tributaries of the Brahamaputra is such a river which carries water of several rivers to the Brahmaputra.

Climate change, obviously, becomes one of the major drivers behind the massive flood and erosion which also affects the rural economy tremendously.

Monoj Gogoi

Monoj Gogioi is an Environmental Activist based in Dhemaji. The views expressed are the author’s own. He can be reached at [email protected]