Indian Agricultural: Growth, Generation, Policy & Problem Indian Agricultural | Page 37

Pg.no. 36
Waterworks were undertaken during the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire era from the 12th to
18th centuries. However, these were primarily to supply water to the palaces and parks of the sultans
and other officials.
Colonial era
In 1800, some 800,000 hectares was irrigated in India. The British Raj by 1940 built significant
number of canals and irrigation systems in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, Assam and Orissa. The
Ganges Canal reached 350 miles from Haridwar to Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh. In Assam, a jungle in
1840, by 1900 had 4,000,000 acres under cultivation, especially in tea plantations. In all, the amount
of irrigated land multiplied by a factor of eight. Historian David Gilmour states British colonial
government had built irrigation network with Ganges canal and that, "by the end of the century the
new network of canals in the Punjab" were in place.
Much of the increase in irrigation during British colonial era was targeted at dedicated poppy and
opium farms in India, for exports to China. Poppy cultivation by the British Raj required reliable,
dedicated irrigation system. Large portions of the eastern and northern regions of India, namely
United Provinces, North-western Provinces, Oudh, Behar, Bengal and Rewa were irrigated to ensure
reliable supply of poppy and opium for China. By 1850, the Asian opium trade created nearly 1,000
square kilometres of poppy farms in India in its fertile Ganges plains, which increased to over 500,000
acres by 1900. This diversion of food crop land to cash crop use, state scholars, led to massive
famines over the 1850 to 1905 period.
Major irrigation canals were built after millions of people died each in a series of major famines in the
19th century in British India. In 1900, British India (including Bangladesh and Pakistan) had about 13
million ha under irrigation. In 1901 the Viceroy, Lord Curzon, appointed a Commission chaired by Sir
Colin Scott-Moncrieff to draw up a comprehensive irrigation plan for India. In 1903 the Commission's
report recommended irrigation of an additional 2.6 million hectares. By 1947, the irrigated area had
increased to about 22 million. In North-western British India region alone, with the colonial
government's effort, 2.2 million hectares of previously barren land was irrigated by 1940s, most of
which is now part of Pakistan. Arthur Cotton led some irrigation canal projects in the Deccan
Ramesh Kumar P