The agricultural impact of India’s falling water table

Overview

Stagnant per capita grain production has created concern about India’s ability to feed itself without resorting to massive imports of food grain. The situation is not helped by steep falls in the water table in food-producing states such as Punjab and Haryana that could hurt agricultural productivity by sharply increasing the cost of food grain production. Although fears of food shortages are exaggerated, the government must deal with the irrational pricing of water and electricity,...