Assam Drought: Govt Apathy and Climate Crisis Leave Farmers Helpless

As the monsoon fails to deliver in many parts of Assam, farmers across the state are facing a severe water crisis that threatens their livelihoods and the region’s food security. From Sivsagar’s rice plains to the dry riverbeds along the Bhutan border, the impact of the changing climate is becoming dangerously clear.

In Sivsagar’s Hahchara-Chowdang area, once known for its rice cultivation during the monsoon months, farmers are now staring at cracked fields and a bleak future. With just a day left for the Assamese month of Saawan, a crucial time for sowing, most fields lie abandoned. Farmers, who would typically be busy ploughing their lands, have given up, as there is simply no water.

“Ase goru nabai hal, howatke nohowai bhal,” said a local farmer, quoting an old Assamese saying that has now turned into a bitter truth. The proverb roughly refers to the situation where one doesn’t plough the field despite having healthy cows/bulls, reflecting the helplessness of farmers.

Though the region has several deep tube well projects initiated by the irrigation department, locals say the systems are defunct. In Hahchora, the No. 1 Deep Tube Well scheme is completely non-functional, choked with weeds, wild growth, and neglect. Other irrigation points across the region also have no water supply.

The local irrigation department had once installed multiple schemes to help farmers through difficult seasons, but today, the systems stand neglected- dry, broken, and overrun by vegetation.

“We informed the department last year itself that no water was coming out, but they haven’t even visited once,” said a farmer, speaking to Pratidin Time.

“Around six to seven villages depend on this land. Both the tube wells here are defunct. We urge the government to fix them before it’s too late.”

Meanwhile, in western Assam and areas bordering Bhutan, the situation is no better — in fact, it may be worse. Due to a prolonged dry spell in neighbouring Bhutan, rivers that normally gush into Assam during the monsoon have dried up. Even the usually forceful Beki River, which overflows during the month of Saawan and floods nearby areas, is now reduced to a narrow stream.

The lack of water has left farmers unable to plant kothia paddy, a key seasonal crop, across thousands of acres. Without natural rainfall or any irrigation system in place, paddy fields are turning into patches of dust. In some areas near Manas National Park, small water bodies, canals, and wetlands have also dried up, putting local wildlife at risk. Reports suggest a growing crisis for aquatic species, birds, and animals that depend on these water sources.

“The farms have completely dried up due to lack of rain. Our paddy crops have failed, the land is parched, and we can’t even meet our daily expenses properly. This year, the heatwave is unbearable, especially for those living in towns,” another local told Pratidin Time.

She further added, “Over the past two years, the water levels have dropped drastically. Earlier, there used to be plenty of cold water, but now whatever little is left is hot and drying up quickly. I believe the water comes from China via Bhutan, but now it’s almost gone.”

The twin crises- manmade neglect in Sivsagar and natural drought in western Assam, have left people worried and anxious. “What will we eat if we cannot sow now?” asked a farmer in Barpeta. Villagers are demanding urgent government action, both to restore irrigation systems where they exist and to support drought-hit areas with water supply and relief measures.

Also Read: Lurinjyoti Gogoi Lashes Out at Assam Govt Over Worsening Drought, Ineffective Irrigation