Punjab Farmers Devastated as Worst Floods in 40 Years Destroy Crops
Farmers in India’s Punjab are reeling from the region’s most severe floods in four decades, with livelihoods destroyed and financial pressures deepening under global trade tensions.
For Gurvinder Singh, a 47-year-old farmer from Gurdaspur, the disaster is personal and crushing. After borrowing one million rupees ($11,000) to marry off his eldest daughter, Singh used part of the loan to cultivate three acres of high-yield pearl Basmati rice. A successful harvest could have helped him repay his debts. Instead, his fields are now submerged in muddy floodwaters.
“This year’s crop was my hope to recover financially,” Singh told Al Jazeera. “But the floods turned my fields into a lake. I don’t know how to start over.”
Singh, along with his wife and two children, has temporarily abandoned their home after the deluge swept through their village. “What will I return to? Everything is under water,” he said.
Punjab’s Farmland Underwater
Heavy monsoon rains and overflowing rivers—Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej—have devastated northern India. In Punjab, where over a third of the population depends on farming, entire villages and paddy fields are submerged just weeks before harvest.
So far, at least 51 lives have been lost in the floods, while nearly 400,000 people have been displaced. Initial government estimates suggest more than 450,000 acres of farmland have been destroyed, though independent experts warn the real figure could be five times higher.
Punjab accounts for 40% of India’s Basmati rice production, a crop worth nearly $6 billion annually in exports. Across the border, Pakistan’s Punjab—also severely flooded—produces 90% of that country’s Basmati, valued at about $900 million.
“The crops are ruined, machinery is under water, and homes have been washed away,” said Lakhwinder Singh, director at Punjabi University’s Centre for Development Economics. “Farmers must restart from scratch, and they’ll need strong government support to survive.”
Inadequate Relief and Mounting Pressures
The state government has promised farmers 20,000 rupees ($230) in relief per family. But many argue the amount is too small to rebuild lives and fields buried under layers of sediment.
Adding to the crisis, farmers face economic headwinds from U.S. trade tariffs. The U.S. imports nearly 6% of India’s Basmati, but Washington has imposed a 50% tariff, complicating farmers’ ability to recover through exports.
Some fear the government in New Delhi could use the floods as an excuse to soften its agricultural policies during trade talks with the Trump administration. “The government must not sacrifice farmers to secure a deal,” Singh warned. “These floods could have a lasting impact on India’s agricultural economy.”
A Race Against Time
Experts say farmers now face the urgent task of clearing sediment and preparing their fields for the next crop cycle. The Kharif (monsoon) harvest, which makes up 80% of India’s rice output, is already lost. Attention is now turning to wheat, which must be planted by November.
“The damage goes beyond crops,” explained agricultural analyst Indra Shekhar Singh. “Sediment has altered soil levels, and fields must be leveled before planting again. On top of that, there’s a looming fertiliser shortage.”
India relies heavily on urea imports, but supplies have dropped sharply. Rising global prices—up from $400 per tonne in May to $530 in September—threaten to trigger black markets and fake pesticide circulation, further straining farmers.
A Shared Tragedy Across Borders
Floods have also devastated Pakistan’s Punjab, where Singh’s daughter now lives with her farmer husband. Their land is also underwater. “We are suffering from the same disaster, but I cannot even visit my daughter,” Singh said.
Reflecting on the irony of shared suffering across hostile borders, Singh added: “We were ready to fight wars over these rivers, but now the rivers themselves are destroying us.”