BHUBANESWAR: Odisha needs a shift towards crop diversification and improved irrigation design to double income of farmers, experts opined on Friday.

Taking part in the panel discussion on ‘Water to Wealth: Leveraging Irrigation for Doubling Farmers’ Income in Odisha’ organised by the Department of Analytical and Applied Economics of the Utkal University in association with the Odisha Economic Association (OEA), the experts drew attention to important empirical findings on irrigation use in Odisha.

Evidence suggests that while paddy cultivation dominates irrigated land, it is highly water-intensive and yields lower value per unit of water compared to pulses and oilseeds. This raises critical concerns regarding the current pattern of water use and underscores the need for a shift towards crop diversification and improved irrigation design, they opined.

Former chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra emphasised the critical role of efficient irrigation systems, institutional reforms and coordinated policy interventions in transforming the agricultural economy of the state.

Secretary of OEA Himanshu Sekhar Rout, PG council chairperson Mitali Chinara, head of the department of Analytical and Applied Economics Siba Sankar Mohanty and Assistant Professor in department of economics at Ravenshaw University Kirtti Ranjan Paltasingh also spoke.