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3.1 Declining Natural Resource Base
The scarcity of soil and water resources, exacerbated by soil degradation and envi-
ronmental pollution, are the principal challenges to enhancing dryland agriculture
production in South Asia. High population densities and high growth rates have
accentuated the demands on soil, water, vegetation, and other natural resources (Lal
2006 ). The per capita renewable freshwater resources are likely to be a severe con-
straint by 2050 in Afghanistan, Iran, India, and Pakistan (Table 6 ). The shortfall in
water availability in Pakistan was 40 million acre feet (MAF) in 2000, which was
projected to 150 MAF by 2025 (Afzal 2001 ). Consequently, some 30 million
Pakistanis face food insecurity due to water shortages (Afzal 2001 ). Furthermore,
water pollution is a serious issue since industrial and urban affluents are often dis-
charged into rivers. Surface and groundwater resources are also prone to nonpoint-
source pollution by runoff from agricultural lands, especially in densely- populated
regions of India (Pachauri and Sridharan 1999 ).
About 70 % of the Indian population lives in rural areas, and most depend on
rainfed agriculture and fragile forests for their livelihoods (World Bank 2011 ). The
mean annual rainfall varies from less than 100 mm in the western part of Rajasthan
to around 11,700 mm in Chirapunji in Meghalaya (Kumar 2011 ). The per capita
annual water availability in India decreased from 5177 m^3 in 1951 to 1654 m^3 in
2007 (MOWR 2008 ). According to the Central Ground Water Board, 15 % of dis-
tricts are overexploited and growing at a rate of 5.5 % per year (Rejani et al. 2015a).
The groundwater level in the 16 states of India has dropped by more than 4 m from
1981–2000, with the most substantial decline in north-western India. In many parts
of Gujarat and Rajasthan, the groundwater level declined by more than 16 m
(Sheetal Sekhri 2012 ).
Similarly, there is significant spatial variation in rainfall in Pakistan, with most
of the country receiving very low rainfall. The whole of Sindh, parts of Baluchistan,
most of Punjab, and central parts of northern areas receive less than 250 mm of
rainfall while northern Sindh, southern Punjab, and north-western Baluchistan
receive less than 125 mm of rainfall (Kumar 2011 ). Soil salinity, waterlogging and
Table 6 Per capita renewable fresh water resources (m^3 /person) in South Asia
Country 1955 1990 1995 2025 2050
Afghanistan 5137 3020 2543 1091 815
Bangladesh 56,411 – 19936 14153 10,803
Bhutan 12,9428 – 53,672 26,056 18,326
India 5227 2464 2244 1496 1360
Iran 6203 2025 1719 816 690
Nepal 19,596 8686 7923 4244 3170
Pakistan 10,590 3962 3435 1803 1310
Sri Lanka 4930 2498 2410 1738 1600
Sources: Engelman and LeRoy ( 1993 ), Gardner-Outlaw and Engelman ( 1997 ) and Lal ( 2006 )
C. Srinivasa Rao et al.