00:00Bundelkhand, a region where trains were once sent to bring water, where farmers would look
00:05to the sky, waiting for rain.
00:07But today, in the same Bundelkhand, farmers are storing rainwater right in their own fields.
00:12So what changed?
00:13These visuals are from Matond in Banda, Uttar Pradesh.
00:17Until a few years ago, farming here depended almost entirely on rainfall.
00:22If it rained, the crops survived.
00:23If it didn't, even recovering the cost of cultivation was difficult.
00:27Then came the Khet Talaab Yojna.
00:30Under the scheme, farmers built ponds on their own land, with the government providing a
00:34subsidy of up to 52,500 rupees towards construction.
00:38Water that once simply flowed away is now being stored in the fields and used to support
00:43the next irrigation cycle.
00:58According to the Department of Land Conservation, Banda has a target of connecting 255 farmers
01:04with the scheme this year.
01:05So far, more than 4800 farmers have benefited from it.
01:09Farmers said that earlier selling crops worth Rs. 15,000 to 50,000 was difficult.
01:15Today, some farmers claim sales of 2 to 3 lakh rupees, while larger farmers report earnings
01:20of up to Rs. 5 to 6 lakh rupees from a single crop.
01:23It would be too early to say that Bundelkhan's water problems has been completely solved.
01:42But one change is clearly visible in these fields of Banda.
01:46Where farmers once depended on the sky, today the water stored in their own fields is helping
01:51support their next crop.
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