Drought hits the agricultural capital of Iraq.. Wasit loses two-thirds of its agricultural plan and

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[size=52]Drought hits the agricultural capital of Iraq.. Wasit loses two-thirds of its agricultural plan and relies on rain to compensate for it[/size]

[size=45]Wasit / Jabbar Bechay[/size]
[size=45]Wasit Governorate, which is considered the food basket of Iraq and its agricultural capital, lost two-thirds of its agricultural plan for wheat and barley crops after it was obligated to plant 400 thousand dunums of both crops instead of its known annual plan, which exceeds one million and 400 thousand dunums, due to water scarcity and drought.[/size]
[size=45]The Ministries of Agriculture and Water Resources agreed to cultivate 5.5 million dunums for the current winter season, including four million dunums that depend on groundwater and 1.5 million dunums on surface water, after specialized committees in the two ministries presented the water situation in the country in terms of storage in Iraqi dams and meteorological forecasts for the period. Coming.[/size]
[size=45]The decision of the two ministries was a major shock to the agricultural and peasant circles in Wasit as a result of reducing the agricultural plan to 400 thousand dunums, at a time when the Supreme Agricultural Committee in the governorate is seeking to approach the Ministry of Agriculture in order to increase the areas for the Wasit plan to 800 thousand dunums, given the importance of the agricultural governorate and what it enjoys. It has the ability to produce high levels of grain, especially wheat.[/size]
[size=45]Assistant Governor of Wasit for Agriculture and Water Resources Affairs, Salam Al-Batikh, says, “This area does not fit at all with the ambitions of the Wasit farmer and represented a great shock to everyone. It is unreasonable to reduce the area by two-thirds and keep one third.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “We will not give up the right of the farmer in the governorate, which was at the forefront in annual production among all governorates, as its annual production rate of wheat in recent years reached 800 thousand tons, equivalent to 37 percent of the total national grain production, and we will put pressure on the Ministries of Agriculture.” And water resources to do justice to Iraq’s Wasit bread basket by increasing the area.” Pointing out that “the other alternative to compensate for the major shortfall in the agricultural plan is that we rely on rain to reach more than the area that was approved, which is 400 thousand dunums, because it is very small and not commensurate with reality, despite the presence of preliminary indicators from specialists of good chances of rainfall in the winter season.” “.[/size]
[size=45]The director of agriculture in the governorate, Engineer Arkan Mariyoush, says, “Wasit Governorate, which is bisected by the Tigris River, depends 90% on irrigation through the presence of networks of irrigation canals, which today have become useless due to the decline in the levels of the Tigris River. This has led to the displacement of many farmers who... Their areas were exposed to drought at a time when agricultural areas declined.”[/size]
[size=45]He explained, “About 40% of the Wasti community is rural, and agriculture is their source of livelihood, but they have begun to gradually lose this source, and this will have major negative effects on civil society in the governorate.”[/size]
[size=45]Pointing out that “the Agriculture Directorate stands by the farmer, as he is the focus of its work and existence after he exploits the land for agricultural and animal production, and demands his rights in terms of government support and other things. The most eloquent rights that we demand this season are the increase in water releases into the Tigris River so that we can then increase the agricultural area.”[/size]
[size=45]Mariyoush explained, “Cultivating one and a half million dunams out of four million dunams suitable for cultivation in Wasit requires 520 cubic meters per second to ensure irrigation, while last year Wasit was granted 120 cubic meters per second, and this is sufficient for less than a third of the specified area.” He stated, “Last year witnessed the cultivation of 786 thousand dunums. This area was increased after the abundance of rain, and wheat production reached 600 thousand tons. We hope this year to increase the agricultural plan specified by the ministry to 400 thousand dunums. This is a demand for all agricultural and agricultural circles, but it depends primarily on the availability of irrigation water, which We also hope to improve its launches.”[/size]
[size=45]Director of the Water Resources Department in Wasit, Karim Hassan Farhan, says, “We participated in the meeting of the Supreme Agricultural Committee in the governorate, which was chaired by the Governor, Chairman of the Supreme Agricultural Committee, and in the presence of the heads of administrative units, directors of agricultural departments and divisions, water resources, and agricultural associations. The meeting was devoted to discussing the agricultural and irrigation reality.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “As a result of this, subcommittees were formed in each administrative unit to follow up on the success of the agricultural plan, and to organize the management of the exchange between farmers and farmers in an accurate and regular manner to ensure that each farmer receives the assigned share according to the agricultural area.”[/size]
[size=45]Pointing out that “the Water Resources Directorate is continuing to remove violations of irrigation channels, especially in the areas located in the river banks, and to deal firmly with the transgressors, referring them to the judiciary and canceling the agricultural plan for their lands.”[/size]
[size=45]For his part, Hassan Sultan, one of the farmers of the Al-Shehimiya Agricultural Project northwest of Wasit, says, “The water issue has become a major threat to the agricultural sector, both plant and animal, and there must be radical solutions to this issue.” Pointing out that “most of the lands of the Al-Shehimiya project are characterized by high fertility and are completely reclaimed lands with high productivity per dunum, but today they have become desolate and barren due to the lack of water.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “Most of the villages there are without drinking water, so how can they obtain irrigation water unless the releases of the Tigris River are increased, and before that there will be a major role for the federal government to put pressure on neighboring countries, especially on Turkey, to increase water releases in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.”[/size]
[size=45]The arable area in Wasit Governorate is estimated at approximately 2,556,626 dunums, of which 47,847 dunums are reclaimed lands and 151,550 semi-reclaimed lands, while the area of ​​non-arable lands is estimated at 2,035,489 dunums. The process of irrigating these areas is carried out through a large group of irrigation systems spread across all areas of the governorate and in both the tourist and pumping directions. However, the dominant feature of irrigation is the adoption of a pumped irrigation system that relies entirely on electricity. In both cases, the Tigris River is the main source, as it penetrates the governorate from the north to the southeast, with a length of 327 km, with the presence of the Al-Gharraf River, which feeds from the front of the Kut Dam and goes towards the south of Wasit, reaching the district. Shatrah in Dhi Qar Governorate.[/size]
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