Karauli's farmers hit by a changing climate

First a lack of rain and then an unseasonal downpour ruined Chatra Devi’s crops. “We cultivated bajra [pearl millet] and it was growing well. But when we had to water our farms, it did not rain. Then it rained during the harvest and ruined the crop,” says the 45-year-old farmer from Khirkhiri village in Rajasthan’s Karauli district.

Karauli’s economy is mainly dependent on agriculture and the majority of residents are either cultivators or agricultural labourers (Census 2011). The state has historically been water-starved and agriculture is mostly rainfed.

A member of the Mina community (listed as ST in the state), Chatra Devi says she has noticed a change in the rainfall pattern over the last 10 years. Rajasthan is India’s largest state (by area) and  70 per cent of the population depend on agriculture and animal husbandry for their livelihoods.

Changing rainfall patterns has forced farmers in Khirkhiri to rely on milk sales for sustenance. But changes in the weather also negatively affects the health of livestock who fall prey to various diseases. “My cow has not eaten properly in the last 5-10 days,” says Chatra Devi.

Anoop Singh Meena, 48, a teacher at the Mahatma Gandhi Senior Secondary School in Khirkhiri is worried about the future. “When I imagine the future of my village, agriculture that is dependent on the monsoons will see a lot of changes. The future seems very dark to me.”

This film, set in Khirkhiri, tells the story of those who depend on the land and the challenges they endure as weather patterns become increasingly erratic.