• Apoorva Bamal
• Niyati Seth
• Sonia Grover

Predominantly due to lesser rainfall in Punjab as compared to other eastern states in India, prolonged paddy cultivation has caused ground water depletion in the region. Therefore, to optimize irrigation water usage in paddy cultivation, it is essential to intervene with the current farming and irrigation practices. This study was undertaken to estimate an indicator of food and water security i.e. Irrigation Water Productivity (IWP) of paddy in the districts of Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur, Punjab. It also compares the results at inter-district level and with that of the best national and international irrigation water productivities. The paper also unveils that IWP in these regions can be enhanced through feasible interventions such as Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) system of irrigation and cultivation of short duration rice varieties. The results of the study indicate that the average IWP was in the range of 0.20-0.29 kg/m3 and 0.16-0.26 kg/m3 in Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur, respectively with conventional farming practices in paddy cultivation. Upon adoption of AWD and cultivation of short duration rice varieties, the IWP can potentially increase to around 0.53-0.91 kg/m3 and 0.51-0.81 kg/m3 in Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur, respectively.

Ground water depletion, paddy cultivation, irrigation water productivity (IWP), efficient interventions, Punjab

"Assessing paddy irrigation water productivity and opportunities for improvement in Punjab", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.8, Issue 5, page no.a926-a936, May-2021, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2105120.pdf

"Assessing paddy irrigation water productivity and opportunities for improvement in Punjab", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.8, Issue 5, page no. ppa926-a936, May-2021, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2105120.pdf